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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29438385">You're Gonna Be My Bruise</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/RebelPaisley/pseuds/RebelPaisley'>RebelPaisley</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Descendants (Disney Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Abandonment Issues, Absurd Contracts, Abuse, Adult Language, Auradon politics, Ben's Beast Makes Him Dumb, Bonding, Chad isn't used to his feelings getting any consideration, Claiming, Complete, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Cuddles, Depression, Dubious Consent, Dumber than usual I mean, Dysfunctional humans who don’t know how to communicate, Emotional Constipation, Exhibitionism, F/F, F/M, Get Together, Happy Ending, Humor, Inexperienced Ben, Jay is a shit, Love Confessions, Low Self-Esteem, M/M, Magical Stamina, Mild Non-graphic assault, Movie: Descendants (2015), Multi, No Beta we die like vikings, Not Audrey friendly, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Politics on the Isle of the Lost (Disney), Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Possessive Behavior, Referenced Neglect, Romance, Sex Toys, Sexual Situations, Slash, Smart Chad, Squishy Jay, Unhealthy Conditioning, but that's as per usual, feelings are hard, poor communication skills, referenced abuse, slutshaming</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 17:07:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>24,459</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29438385</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/RebelPaisley/pseuds/RebelPaisley</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In theory, it wasn’t a big deal.  Everyone who was of noble, high birth and eager to see themselves on the throne of the United States of Auradon signed the same contract upon attending Auradon Prep that would, theoretically, allow Prince Benjamin to engage in acts of physical intimacy wherever he so chose – potentially in public, should the need arise.  It was all in an effort to cater to his beast, but it wasn’t like he’d ever made use of it.  </p><p>Did Chad want to have sex with Ben?  Not particularly, his focus was more on expanding the depth of his political knowledge.  He didn’t really have room for a relationship in that – as superficial as it may be, but not signing the form was a snub that could potentially affect Sardinia’s status within the United States of Auradon – not that the Auradon royal family would ever say as much.  It was an implied misstep, so Chad signed the form and hadn’t thought much of it, which was of course why Benjamin, the-most-frustrating-individual-in-the-world, had decided to finally make use of it. </p><p>Curse Chad’s very life. </p><p>Also known as – That weird exhibitionist contract AU that shouldn’t work but somehow does.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ben/Chad Charming, Ben/Chad Charming/Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos de Vil, Ben/Chad Charming/Jay, Ben/Chad Charming/Jay/Mal, Ben/Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos de Vil, Ben/Jay (Disney: Descendants), Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos de Vil</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>117</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Contract</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>GENERAL WARNING – Dubious Consent – While Chad signs a contract that allows for Ben’s sexual advances, the entire system is sort of skeevy, so he’s more resigned to it than enthusiastic.  This version of Chad has a tendency to keep his feelings at bay in favor of logic, so it takes him a while to really warm up to anyone.  Like, he will, but I wanted to leave this general warning regardless for those of you uncomfortable with the premise. </p><p>Like, that’s totally fair, it’s a dumb premise, but it’s one my mind managed to run with until I got a completed draft, so here it is for someone’s viewing pleasure.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chad’s life was ruined.</p><p>Over before his high school career could even begin, all because of one stupid edict that catered to the stubborn wiles of a hormonal prince.</p><p>It went like this: King Adam’s curse may have been lifted, but a few <em>quirks</em> had remained in his bloodline, passed onto his son who, from what Chad could tell, was of reasonable temperament and general steadfastness.  At least until the guy had hit puberty, and the <em>‘carnal beast inside</em>’ or whatever had taken over with an explosive ferocity. </p><p>The basics went like so – Prince Ben had tried to repress the beast and the results… hadn’t been pretty.  Therefore, he, along with every one of his peers, was given the order to cater to the beast’s needs to avoid another blowup, <em>no matter the cost</em>. </p><p>It was optional, of course.  You didn’t have to sign the form that would allow you to be up for consideration, it was just political suicide <em>not</em> to.  No one wanted to risk slighting the most powerful people in Auradon, so while many a teen of less-noble birth opted out of the contract, every heir and teen that had some amount of political importance signed the damn thing and let the cards fall where they may, knowing it was better to be safe than sorry.</p><p>Great.  Fine.  Whatever.  What gossip Chad managed to glean from Sardinia indicated that this pretty much gave Ben a free pass to masturbate in public should he so choose, or really, should the <em>beast</em> so choose, and that was it.  The rest of them were technically ordered to help him should he ever ask for it, but he never had.</p><p>Until the day Chad finally got to go to Auradon Prep. </p><p>Due to his grandfather’s general disdain, Chad had completed elementary school, intermediary school, and junior high all within the borders of Sardinia.  It was when he hit high school that his grandfather finally decided to ship Chad out of the country and out of the way, which was fine with Chad, who wanted to learn about the world outside of Sardinia’s borders.  He wanted to network with his peers and make friends. </p><p>He was tired of being ‘<em>the crown prince</em>’ – held at a distance and up on some pedestal that he was unqualified to satisfy.  At Auradon Prep, he would be one of many princes, nothing particularly special and <em>finally</em> he could fade into the background enough to maybe get some real friends and maybe even a girlfriend which would be pretty cool.  There were a lot of pretty girls at Auradon Prep.  There were a lot of pretty girls back in Sardinia too, but all of them wanted Chad because he was <em>the prince</em>, not because they cared about his personality (which was, admittedly, shit).  Here, maybe he could find someone who liked him for <em>him</em>. </p><p>It was a tantalizing thought, full of hope and promise, and also horribly naïve. </p><p>It was, Chad suspected, this naivety that likely doomed him from the start, for daring to have things like ‘hopes’ and ‘dreams’ and small, respectable wishes like not being the center of attention all the damn time.</p><p>Things had been going well, by Chad’s standards.  He’d settled into his assigned room, awkwardly attempted to bond with his roommate (Doug, the son of Dopey, who seemed almost afraid of Chad, who wouldn’t say more than three words anytime Chad tried to start a conversation), and managed to make it to his first class without getting lost.  It was, overall, a win.</p><p>And then Benjamin <em>asshole</em> Florian had stormed into the history classroom.</p><p>The teacher didn’t so much as look up from his lecture notes, which… seemed weird.  Chad vaguely remembered the ‘cooperate with Ben’s beast’ order thing that Fairy Godmother had reviewed with him over orientation, wearing a strained smile that didn’t sit well on her features at all, but he didn’t think that extended to faculty and overt rudeness.  Chad was also pretty sure this wasn’t Ben’s class because all the desks were occupied, and it seemed shortsighted on the faculty’s part to not have enough desks to meet the number of students in the class. </p><p>Chad wished he imagined the way the students around him tensed, but he had always been especially perceptive, seeing as he had to deal with fangirls on a fairly regular basis.  His classmates were bracing themselves for something, and Chad didn’t know what it was until he felt Ben’s eyes land on him. </p><p>It seemed like Ben crossed the room between one breath and the next, and then suddenly he was next to Chad’s desk, hand curled around the back of Chad’s chair as he generously leaned into the blond’s space.</p><p>“Um…” Chad blinked, feeling his chest tighten slightly. “Hi?”</p><p>The other prince’s response was to bury his nose in the crook of Chad’s neck and <em>breathe</em>, shuddering like he’d just taken a hit of drugs or something like drugs (Chad didn’t know, he wasn’t a delinquent), before pulling back with a literal <em>growl</em>.</p><p>“<em>Finally</em>,” he huffed, sliding onto his knees.</p><p>“‘Finally’ what?” Chad asked, legitimately confused, which proved to be a temporary distraction because then Ben was crawling under his desk. </p><p>There wasn’t exactly a lot of room for him to occupy, but Ben managed it, shoving Chad’s legs wide like a <em>weirdo</em> while Chad tried to act like a <em>normal human</em> and peered under the top of his desk.</p><p>“<em>What are you doing?</em>” Chad hissed, because their classmates were staring.</p><p>“Tasting,” Ben said, which clarified nothing, at least until he started fumbling with Chad’s <em>belt</em>.</p><p>And then it all became sort of obvious where this was going.</p><p>Mother fucking shit fucking damn <em>of course</em>.  Of <em>course</em> it was Chad that Ben dipshit Florian fuckface decided he needed to demand things from when he’d literally bothered <em>no one else ever</em>, because that was Chad’s luck.  He could already see his future going down the drain as he did nothing but sit there while Ben unzipped his fly and started nuzzling at Chad’s underwear – which at least were tasteful, as though Chad had somehow foreseen the fact that maybe some of his classmates would see them that day. </p><p>“Holy <em>shit</em>,” the guy sitting next to Chad said.  He was pretty sure it was the prince of Agrabah – Aziz, maybe?  Chad didn’t know, didn’t <em>care</em> because the teacher was starting up the lecture like nothing was wrong and Benjamin the-worst-human-<em>ever</em> was mouthing at Chad through his underwear while Chad had to sit and take it because he’d signed the same wavers as everyone fucking else. </p><p>Chad hated.  He <em>hated</em>, he had nothing but hate and anger in his dumb little soul.  This was probably some hormonal teenager’s dream, but not <em>Chad’s</em>, who wanted to prove to his grandfather that he could be a good king of Sardinia.  His own lack of focus had been a big enough hurdle in that regard, now he had to deal with Prince <em>Benjamin</em> guiding him out of his underwear so he could lavish Chad directly with taunting licks that made Chad want to punch himself in the face. </p><p>He was pretty sure Aziz was watching this more than he was doing his classwork.  Chad was pretty sure a few other students were watching too, not that Ben seemed to care, even though Chad very much did.  He kept one hand shoved against his mouth to keep the moans from spilling out while he tried desperately to take notes with the other, even though they were more like scribbled chicken scratch.  It was a good thing he’d decided to record this lecture for safety, but now he had to deal with the possibility of his dumb gasps spilling into the recording, which he did not need when he reviewed this later. </p><p>As far as Chad could tell, Ben had no real talent for this.  He was actually kind of awful.  He seemed to relish sucking the tip of Chad’s genitals without ever trying to go deeper, using his hands to tease the rest of Chad until his thighs were shaking, until he could feel himself leak into that eager mouth, and then Ben pulled back to lick up <em>that</em>, like Chad was ice cream or some shit.  It was very unsatisfying and Chad hated it. </p><p>He hated it even more when Ben stopped completely, poking his head out from under Chad’s desk so he could regard the blond with flushed, slick lips. “You aren’t making any noises?”</p><p>“We’re in <em>class</em>,” Chad hissed, watching the way Aziz seemed to perk up in interest, trying not to be obvious about his eavesdropping but totally being obvious. “I’m not going to be more distracting than this already is.”</p><p>Ben pouted.  He actually pouted.  Like a five-year-old. “You should though.”</p><p>Chad narrowed his eyes at the giant baboon that was going to rule the united kingdoms one day, after his ‘bestial tendencies’ leveled themselves out, supposedly.</p><p>“No,” he said, jabbing a finger against Ben’s forehead because his dick was out and hard in the middle of class and he did not deserve this kind of attention, he had enough people admiring him for his looks as it was.</p><p>Ben was scowling now, as though he hadn’t looked immature <em>before</em>.  He teased a hand carefully between Chad’s legs, making the blond squeeze his eyes shut as a ripple of pleasure curled through him, new wetness smearing against Ben’s fingers as he ruthlessly swallowed a whimper. </p><p>Chad had all but given up on taking notes, mostly trying to get through class with whatever amount of composure he could manage, until he felt Ben <em>biting</em> his thigh through the material of his pants.  Not deep bites, but pointed, like he wanted to get Chad’s attention. </p><p>The blond huffed, and managed to aim a weary glare at the dipshit. “<em>What?</em>”</p><p>“Why haven’t you come yet?” Ben asked, seeming deeply unsettled by this.</p><p>“Because you’re terrible at this,” Chad hissed, blithely ignoring the way Aziz seemed to choke in surprise, a few other students stifling sounds of shock.</p><p>Ben had the audacity to look conflicted over this. “No, I’m not.”</p><p>“You’re right,” Chad breathed, flexing his hands against his desk. “I just have amazing restraint.  I’ve been sabotaging you this entire time.”</p><p>That earned him a glare before Ben was ducking back under Chad’s desk to taunt him again, somehow managing to perfect the balancing act of being constantly stimulating without ever bringing Chad to completion, meaning by the time class was over, a full forty minutes later, Chad was not only humiliated as fuck, he was also horny and frustrated as well. </p><p>It was sort of a relief when the bell rang.</p><p>“<em>Stop</em>,” Chad ordered, poking at Ben’s head until the teen pulled off him.  Before Ben could recover, Chad tucked himself back into his clothes and packed up his backpack, all while deftly ignoring the asshole that had made him miss the entirety of his first class. </p><p>“Hey,” Ben said, making grabby hands at Chad as he moved to stand up. “Wait, we’re not done yet.”</p><p>“The <em>fuck we’re not</em>,” Chad hissed, slipping on his backpack and blocking out the stares of his classmates that would never ever respect him again. “You had <em>fifty</em> minutes.  How they hell did you waste fifty minutes?”</p><p>This, at least, made Ben look sheepish. “…I haven’t had a lot of practice.”</p><p>“Then practice on <em>Aziz</em>,” Chad said, motioning towards the Agrabah prince who sputtered at the sudden attention. “Since he seems so damn interested.”</p><p>“No.” Ben seemed set on this. “I want you.”</p><p>“Then want me slightly better,” Chad snapped before strolling towards the nearest bathroom.  He didn’t worry about being late to his next class because Ben was already on his heels, would likely stay there because he was fixated <em>for whatever</em> reason.</p><p>“Hey,” Ben said as they entered the room, the few other students that were in there taking one look at Chad and Ben before immediately vacating the premises. “Pay attention to me.” </p><p>“I’m paying attention to you,” Chad said distractedly, dumping his backpack on the ground before pushing into the nearest stall. “This is me, paying attention to-”</p><p>He was interrupted by a <em>growl</em>, and then Ben had him pinned against the side of the stall, was looming into Chad’s space and pawing at Chad’s clothes until the blond was forced to undo his belt and pants for him lest they be ripped apart completely.</p><p><em>Immediately</em>, Ben shoved the offending garments down and out of the way, and Chad was prepared for another torturous blowjob session until Ben repeated the process on himself, revealing a very wet and very large erection that he then proceeded to-</p><p>Let it be known that for all his (very mild) curiosity, Chad had never touched genitals with another male before.  He hadn’t really touched genitals with <em>anyone</em> to be honest, but this was noteworthy because it was a guy, even if it was a dumb one, who had thin, long fingers that he wrapped around both of them, pumping them in tandem with a ferocity that finally relieved the edge of Chad’s tension.</p><p>“<em>Yes</em>,” Chad hissed, rutting into the contact. “Yes- <em>fuck</em>, like that.”</p><p>“This is good?” Ben asked, hungry, searching for approval, and Chad gave it to him willingly, nodding like his life depended on it because he couldn’t take another fifty minutes of teasing, insubstantial stimulation.</p><p>“Y-<em>esss</em>,” Chad groaned, keeping his hands curled around Ben’s dumb, bony shoulders. “Yes, <em>yes-</em>”</p><p>“You’re so pretty,” Ben said, leaning forward to get a better look at Chad. “So flushed and perfect.  I’ve been waiting for you <em>forever</em>.”</p><p>“No, you haven’t,” Chad hissed on principle. “You haven’t known me for forever.” Ben hadn’t even known Chad for an hour, let alone more.</p><p>“Figuratively,” Ben huffed, dipping low so he could nip at Chad’s neck. “Every prince attended Auradon Junior High but not <em>Prince</em> <em>Chadwick</em>.”</p><p>“Then I’m just a passing fancy,” Chad breathed, relief seeming to flood him. </p><p>That was good.  He was just a novelty, something Ben hadn’t been able to have.</p><p>“<em>Never</em>,” Ben growled, pumping them together in a pointed rut that left Chad moaning. “No, no, no- I saw you and the beast said <em>mine</em>.”</p><p>“Not yours,” Chad hissed, because even if he had to submit to this as his <em>civic duty</em>, he was still his own.</p><p>“<em>Mine</em>,” Ben snarled, grinding against Chad particularly hard. “I’ll show you- I’ll make up for everything, I’ll take you apart, I’ll-”</p><p>“Just <em>get us off</em>, already,” Chad snapped, and a few seconds later, Ben did just that.</p><p>For the record, he was also a giant <em>asshole</em> about it, which Chad wouldn’t recognize until later when he was coming off of his high, relieved but panting and relaxed.  When he was catching his breath, he’d realize that Ben aimed the entirety of their release at <em>Chad</em>, making his sweater a painted canvas of their misdeeds that Ben had the audacity to nuzzle as he continued to tease between Chad’s legs.</p><p>“Stay like this,” he ordered, licking at Chad’s neck. “The rest of the day.  They need to see that you’re <em>mine</em>.”</p><p>“I liked this sweater,” Chad sniffed, because he couldn’t counter a direct order.</p><p>Ben grinned. “I like it better now.”</p><p>And that, pretty much, was the beginning of the end.</p><p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p><p>Either Ben didn’t have classes, or he didn’t particularly care too much about those classes because he followed Chad around for the rest of the day.  In second period, Chad was treated to his classmates’ blatant stares at his ruined sweater (and also glares from what he assumed were princesses with a misplaced conception of what being the object of Ben’s focus was like) and a seat in Ben’s lap.  At least Chad was able to take notes this time, though he had to deal with Ben sucking dark marks against the curve of his neck until Chad was pretty sure the tan skin bore a mess of hickies that Ben seemed to enjoy licking out of <em>spite</em>. </p><p>Third period was more lap time and Ben easing a hand into Chad’s underwear for the express purpose of toying with him until he wanted to smash his head into the desk in frustration.  The rest of the day passed a lot like that, with Ben maintaining some form of contact with Chad at all times, though he seemed to especially like sniffing Chad’s neck, or wrapping himself around the blond’s back if they stood still for too long.  If Ben so much as <em>thought</em> he caught someone checking Chad out (and they weren’t, at least, not like <em>that</em>) he would meaningfully palm between the blond’s legs while leveling out a death stare because Ben was actually the worst. </p><p>By lunchtime, Chad’s body had received more sexual attention in half a day than he’d deigned to give it in like, <em>a month</em>, so it was no wonder he was frazzled and tired and stupidly out of it. </p><p>“Please,” Chad groaned when Ben tugged him towards the dining hall. “<em>Please</em>, I need a break.”</p><p>At the very least, Chad needed to hydrate. </p><p>Ben’s gaze flashed towards him, assessing, and then Chad was dragged out of the school building and towards the dormitories, where Ben… thoughtfully arranged for a private lunch.  Chad would take a moment to be grateful but mostly he just fell upon the food and water before Ben could do something like change his mind, and then he was getting carried into bed.</p><p>Fine.  Great.  Whatever.  Ben <em>had</em> given him a break, and at least they weren’t in public anymore, so that was something.  Ben spooned close to Chad’s back, wrapping an arm around his waist before he just sort of… settled.</p><p>“What are we doing?” Chad asked, unable to help himself.</p><p>“Sleep,” Ben rumbled, nuzzling the back of Chad’s head. “You’re tired.”</p><p>“Because you keep <em>sexing</em> me.”</p><p>And it was very stressful.</p><p>“Sleep,” he repeated.</p><p>Chad sighed. “Don’t let me sleep through the bell, okay?”     </p><p>Ben hummed.  Chad would realize later that this was a noncommittal hum, because Ben totally let him sleep through fifth period and part of sixth period <em>like an asshole</em>.  Chad managed to get to seventh, and eighth he didn’t even make it out of the locker room, because Ben took one look at him stripping down and decided he wanted to get in on that.</p><p>Overall, even with the nap, Chad was exhausted by the time his first day of classes was done, he hadn’t made any new friends, and he’d been gifted with a stupid sexually-focused shadow.  A shadow that tugged Chad back towards <em>his</em> room instead of allowing Chad to retreat to his dorm in peace.</p><p>“<em>Ben</em>,” Chad groaned, totally done with this life. “We can do this dumb shit in my room.”</p><p>“Not dumb,” Ben growled. “And no.  You need to be in my bed.”</p><p>“Room,” Chad countered.</p><p>Ben made a face. “Fine.”</p><p>At least it was a compromise, sort of.</p><p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p><p>Chad didn’t actually make it out of Ben’s room the next day.</p><p>Or the next.</p><p>In fact, his entire life seemed to be relocated to the crown prince’s private suite, and while Chad <em>could</em> complain about it, living there at least mitigated the number of times Ben tried to give him blowjobs in public.</p><p>Granted, Chad could get no networking done, but at least he was learning?  That was something.  He felt like that counted.</p><p>It <em>had</em> to count, because he wasn’t going to be allowed to leave until Ben was done with him, and the dipshit prince didn’t seem to be doing <em>that</em> anytime soon, so-</p><p>Yeah.  Guess Chad was just a whore to the crown now.</p><p>Whoopie.</p><p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p><p>“I don’t want you to meet them.”</p><p>“What?” Chad blinked up from his homework, because that was his life now, frantically shoving his studies into the few moments Ben would allow him out of bed, because all though he’d been given the all clear to act on his sexual impulses to his heart’s content, Ben hadn’t taken it, because he’d been waiting for <em>Chad</em>.</p><p>Some might consider this romantic, but Chad just found it obnoxious, and yet another punchline in the grand joke that was his life.</p><p>“The transfer students,” Ben said, as though that explained anything. “I don’t want you to meet them.”</p><p>Chad gave him the driest look he could muster when he was still recovering from what had been a voracious afternoon sex-fest. “Ben, I practically live in this room.  I don’t meet anyone.  Why you think this would randomly change for some transfer students from <em>who knows where</em>, I do not know-”</p><p>“They’re from the Isle,” Ben said, cutting Chad’s sarcastic monologue off at the quick. “And it’s- it’s not that I think they’re um- wicked or anything, they deserve a chance to be here and start fresh just as much as anyone else-”</p><p>“You brought over kids from the Isle?” </p><p>That was actually something useful.  Reasonable. </p><p>Very un-Ben like.</p><p>“-it’s just that they could be very charming and I know <em>you’re</em> charming and you’re mine.”</p><p>“Not yours,” Chad said, mostly by wrote, earning a smile that was more bared teeth than anything else.</p><p>“<em>Mine</em>,” Ben hissed, pausing his nervous pace to bury his face in Chad’s neck, fondling the blond’s groin through the thin material of Ben’s pjs with the promise to pursue more should Chad force the issue.</p><p>“Whatever.” Chad rolled his eyes.  At some point, Ben was going to get bored of him.  Looks weren’t everything; Chad knew that better than anyone else.</p><p>Beauty faded.  Dumb was forever.</p><p>Which made Chad feel particularly sorry for Ben.</p><p>He decided to change the subject, furrowing his brows in thought. “Hey um… they’re not required to consent to the same sex-paperwork as everyone else, right?”</p><p>“Please don’t call it sex paperwork,” Ben groaned.  It took little effort for his beast strength to lift Chad enough to slide into his chair, letting the blond settle in his lap.  He didn’t immediately get grabby though, which meant he just needed a little reassurance. “And no – that would be horrible.  It’s sort of horrible that my parents made everyone else sign them.”</p><p>“It’s our civic duty,” Chad drawled, repeating the phrase that had pretty much become his life mantra.</p><p>“Well, I’m not making them do it,” Ben insisted, burying his nose in the curve of Chad’s neck. “Besides, I’ve got you.  That’s more than enough.”</p><p>“You also have <em>the rest of our class</em>,” Chad reminded him with a sigh.</p><p>Just like every other time he pointed this out, Ben chose to ignore him, gnawing carefully on Chad’s neck with a petulant sort of pout.</p><p>Whatever.  This entire conversation was pointless.  Chad hadn’t been able to network with his peers since the moment he’d gotten here, why Ben thought that would change, he did not know, but they both knew it wouldn’t.</p><p>And that was that.</p><p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p><p>The night of the transfer students’ arrival was a busy one, at least for Ben, who had so much pent-up energy and so few ways to process it that Chad ended up pinned to the bed and thoroughly ravished in an engagement of coitus that Ben picked right back up on the next morning, until Chad was gasping for relief because even the pheromones Ben apparently produced couldn’t overcome his biological limitations forever.  </p><p>Ben was kind enough to apologize by letting Chad enjoy one of those soothing baths with the ache-relieving oils that he was coming to rely on before the prince went off to do things like <em>interact with the rest of the school</em> while Chad collapsed in bed.</p><p>By the time he heard movement rustling around the prince’s private quarters sometime later, he’d assumed that Ben had either returned for a book he’d forgotten, or the prince had sent someone with food. </p><p>When Chad managed the effort to open his eyes, he found neither.  Unless Ben’s servants dressed like Agrabens who had seen better days.  Who also didn’t have food.</p><p><em>Ugh</em>.</p><p>It was at that point Chad vaguely remembered Ben mentioning that one of the transfer students was the son of Jafar.  Just his luck. </p><p>The guy had managed to sneak in without tripping any of the alarms, picked the lock unless he’d sweet talked a key from Ben (which he hadn’t, since Ben was so adamant on protecting Chad from the world).  He was currently skulking around Ben’s desk, shifting through paperwork with an expression that was mixed parts confusion and annoyance. </p><p>Chad searched the surrounding area for any of his clothes and, as was becoming the usual, found none.</p><p>Ben was such a <em>shit</em>. </p><p>It was ultimately irrelevant; at this point his body was old news to the population of the school.  He was pretty sure Aziz had taken some videos, which Chad was definitely going to blackmail him over under threat of a civil suit for violating his privacy.  Also, for possession of underage pornography.  It wasn’t the type of networking Chad had in mind when he came to Auradon Prep, but it would have to do for now.</p><p>Chad levered himself into the sitting position with a sigh, rubbing sleep from his eyes. “What, exactly, are you looking for?”</p><p>Stealth-guy seemed to be good enough to break into a private restricted area but not good enough to clear his surroundings because apparently he hadn’t seen Chad, and startled visibly before making a valiant recovery that was all for nothing when he realized Chad’s torso was a mess of bites, hickies, and scratch marks.</p><p>Chad didn’t know if it was flattering or just natural curiosity that had the guy looking Chad over, gaze settling on the skin just above the silk sheet settled at his waist, as though hoping he would develop x-ray vision in the next few moments to see if Chad was actually naked under there or not.</p><p>“Um.” Stealth-guy did not seem to know what to do with this situation, as he was obviously caught somewhere he shouldn’t be, being accosted by someone who obviously wasn’t scared of him. “…are you a prostitute?”</p><p>Chad made a face. “No.  Prostitutes get paid.”</p><p>For whatever reason, that made the intruder blush, as though he hadn’t heard worse on the Isle. “So are you just a whore?”</p><p>Sweet fucking <em>shit</em>, these guys had no idea how basic relationships worked, did they?  Granted, what Chad and Ben had wasn’t close to ‘basic’, but like, based on first impressions they should get at least that much.</p><p>Chad allowed himself to glare. “Maybe for my civic duty,” he said, deciding he was tired of being trapped beneath the sheet and sliding out of the bed, lack of clothes be damned.</p><p>Stealth-guy made no attempt to hide the way he looked Chad over, but at least his flush had darkened, so that was cool.</p><p>“What do you need?” Chad asked, riffling through the papers on Ben’s desk. </p><p>Stealth-guy had to pull himself away from staring at Chad’s ass (that probably had bite marks on it because Ben was just <em>the best</em>) to blink at him. “What?”</p><p>“Ben’s organization system is awful,” Chad said. “So I’m guessing you guys sent your stealthiest person to get information to fully explain your stay here, because Ben probably didn’t bother spelling it out to you.” He paused to give the guy a commiserating look. “He can be kind of dumb sometimes.”</p><p>Other guy just sort of stared at him.</p><p>“Am I close?” Chad asked. “We can make copies of whatever you want and sneak the originals back so he won’t realize they’re missing.  Not that he will.  At least, not immediately.”</p><p>Ben was sort of a mess of hormones with occasional viewings of a decent, kind individual hidden under all that beast stuff, <em>that</em> guy just didn’t get to come out much.  At least, not from what Chad had seen.</p><p>Stealth-guy was gaping at him now.  He recovered wonderfully, but that didn’t stop the fact that it’d happened. “You want to help me?”</p><p>“It’s four of you guys in a society that operates completely different from anything you know.  Of course you deserve access to any information that would facilitate your transition easier.  You deserve to have that shot.”</p><p>“And if we- if <em>I</em> had questions,” the guy asked, fiddling with his fingerless gloves. “Could I ask you them?”</p><p>“Sure.” Chad shrugged. “As long as Ben’s not around.  He’s real big about keeping me locked away from the ‘cruelties of the world’.  It’s a dumb beast thing.”</p><p>The comment must have taken the other guy off guard, because he sputtered out a laugh at Chad’s casual disdain.  And maybe it was all the sex, but other guy looked kind of cute when he smiled. </p><p>Maybe Ben was right to keep Chad away from them after all.</p><p>“So what?” the guy said, propping his hip against the desk in what might be a flirtatious lean. “Are you like his uh- princess?  Or, prince, I mean?”</p><p>“I’m his nothing,” Chad griped, gathering up the paperwork he thought might be helpful because other guy didn’t seem to be one for reading. “As much as he insists otherwise.”</p><p>“So salty,” the guy murmured, crossing his arms. “He must be really good at sex if you stay around.”</p><p>At the very least, Ben was getting there, not that Chad was going to say as much.</p><p>Instead, he levered an unimpressed look at Stealth-guy.  “I’m going to make copies of these.” When the guy didn’t move, he added, “You’re going to come with me, so you are supervised.”</p><p>“You wound me,” he said in mock injury, pressing a hand to his chest.</p><p>Chad raised on brow at him, and then with a laugh, other guy followed. </p><p>What a dutiful pup.  Ben could learn something from him.    </p><p>“So,” Stealth-guy began conversationally when Chad was halfway through making his copies. “Do I get a name to go with that gorgeous body?”</p><p>“You got a name you’re going to offer first?” Chad shot back, rolling his eyes so hard he thought he might fall over.</p><p>Still, he didn’t miss the way Stealth-guy tensed in his peripherals, like he hadn’t been expecting the question, like he’d assumed Chad would have read up on who he was.</p><p>Just like every other time, though, the intruder was quick to recover, so much so that it was almost like it hadn’t happened at all. “I’m Jay, <em>sweet cheeks</em>.”</p><p>“I’m Chad, <em>asshole</em>,” Chad muttered, collecting the fresh copies into a neat pile before he ushered Jay back towards Ben’s desk. “And I’ve got a lot more going for me than my looks.”</p><p>“Yeah, I’m getting the feeling your stamina’s pretty good too,” Jay said, throwing a wink over his shoulder, and of course Chad would run into the one asshole who was more incorrigible than Ben. </p><p>Chad snatched up one of Ben’s empty folders and shoved the copied documents inside, thrusting it against Jay’s chest and letting the intruder catch it before it fell to the ground completely. “Take your paperwork and go, you flirt,” he said, waving Jay to the window.  On a hunch, he decided to continue with- “And try not to break into anymore museums, would you?”</p><p>Chad had a personal investment in some of the items housed in the Central Auradon Museum, and as such, had alerts set up for tripped alarms.  Especially those surrounding Fairy Godmother’s wand.</p><p>Jay stared at him with an inscrutable look, but if Chad had to make any guesses, he would say the guy was concerned.</p><p>Chad waved this off. “Teenager in a strange new land,” he said dismissively. “You’re bound to make a few dumb decisions.  Just try not to get caught.  Again.”</p><p>This earned him a small chuckle. “You’re a feisty one, Mr. Prince.”</p><p>“And you need to pay more attention to your surroundings, Mr. Stealth.”</p><p>“Oh?” Jay’s lips split in a wide grin. “You think I’m stealthy, do you?”</p><p>“Not particularly,” Chad drawled. “Stealthy people don’t get caught.”</p><p>“I still got what I needed though, didn’t I?” Jay asked, holding up the folder with a smug grin.</p><p>“With my <em>help</em>.” That Chad didn’t have to give him. “If you think of any questions, come right after class tomorrow.  Ben’s got Tourney practice, so I can update you then.”</p><p>“I might also have Tourney,” Jay said, making a face that indicated that he wasn’t sure how he felt about this.</p><p>Chad sighed. “Then come during your study period – just don’t cut anymore classes.” Like Jay must be doing now. “It will reflect poorly on you, and by extension, the rest of the Isle kids, and then we won’t be able to get the rest of you off.”</p><p>Jay, who had been about to climb out the window, paused.  Stared at Chad. “You want to get more kids off the Isle?”</p><p>“We want to get <em>all</em> the kids off the Isle,” Chad said, because if he was going to be forced to warm Ben’s bed on a regular basis, then he was going to push some of his own political beliefs into the works.  It was only fair. “And the petty criminals too.  And fix the entire incarceration system, because it’s stupid, but we’ve got to tackle one thing at a time.”</p><p>Jay just stared at him like he was crazy. “You are insane.”</p><p>“Or a genius,” Chad sniffed.  The two were often interchangeable.</p><p>Jay offered him an incorrigible grin. “You’re definitely <em>hot</em>, at least.”</p><p>“Out,” Chad said, pointing to the window. “Heads up – you want to be good at flirting here, think of complimenting something other than a person’s looks.”</p><p>“Is that what Ben does?” Jay asked, because apparently he was one to push and push until he could push no more.</p><p>“<em>Out</em>,” Chad repeated. </p><p>Jay left him with a wink and a cocky salute, and then it was just Chad standing naked the his window, drawing the curtains closed with a sigh before he decided to forgo being productive altogether and collapsed back into bed. </p><p>This, he decided, was something Ben didn’t need to know.  Because he’d be stupid about it.</p><p>It was a gift.</p><p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p><p>“Aw, you’re wearing clothes this time,” was how Jay chose to greet Chad the second time they met, the Isle teen crawling in through the window he had exited last time, armed with a cocky smile Chad couldn’t hate if he wanted to.</p><p>Well, he could, because he was talented like that, but part of him <em>didn’t</em> want to and that was actually sort of impressive.</p><p>“Get in, loser,” Chad ordered with a roll of his eyes, pulling Ben’s dressing robe closer to him.  That morning Ben’s beast had been slightly less demanding of Chad, but the blond had opted to stick to the room to do his schoolwork anyway.  Ostensibly, it was because he was making use of the privileges being Ben’s bitch earned him, but realistically (and less addressed by his own desires), it was to be available for Jay – who didn’t leer all that much less than Ben did, but at least he kept his distance and Chad got to talk to him, so it was all he needed.</p><p>“I have food,” Chad continued, motioning to the breakfast table Ben had tucked in a corner by the windows.  “If you’re not an asshole, I might even share it with you.”</p><p>“You know,” Jay began, deftly relocking the window behind him as he prowled across the room. “Most people here are either afraid of us, ignore us, or hate us because of what our parents did.  Or are trying <em>way</em> too hard to be nice.” He threw himself into one of the free chairs, and without prompting, Chad passed him a plate of sandwiches. “You, on the other hand, seem to dislike me just for being me, which is actually kind of refreshing.”  </p><p>“That’s because I’m not stupid,” Chad sniffed, settling back into his own chair so he could enjoy his energy boosting salad because Ben’s chefs had an <em>outrageous</em> sense of humor. “When <em>you</em> start murdering people, then I’ll hate you.  Until that point, you’ll have to be judged on your own merits, and so far those merits lead me to believe you are a flirt, for reasons I’m still trying to mule over.”</p><p>“Oh?” Jay quirked a brow at him, selecting two of the sandwiches at random and brushing them onto his plate. “Care to share any of those with me?”</p><p>“Sure.” Chad shrugged, picking at his salad. “You stole two paperweights and a letter opener the last time you were here, so you were probably a thief by trade back on the Isle, so there’s a good chance that you honed your flirtation skills as a distraction technique for that.” Jay froze, as though he hadn’t expected Chad to catch that, like he was stupid. “They were ugly paperweights, so I don’t really give a shit, just don’t stab anyone with the letter opener.” Because again, it would make the Isle kids look bad. “Hypothetically speaking, <em>because</em> the Isle is inhabited by villains we allow to run free, you’re likely subjected to heavy negative influences, and your flirtatious offerings are one of the few endeavors where you receive positive attention.  Or <em>because</em> you are a thief, it’s something you are good at, so you take pride in exercising this skill to make yourself feel better, clinging to some of the few positives you have.  Or it’s a mask because you’re insecure, or it’s a combination of any of the reasons above and also you enjoy intimate relations so it has the additional bonus of sometimes leading to that.”</p><p>Chad finished rearranging his salad by the time he was done with his diatribe, and looked up to find Jay just sort of staring at him again.</p><p>Chad blinked. “Was that a rhetorical question?  I’m not great with rhetorical questions.”</p><p>He wasn’t really great at speaking to people in general, but that was due to his own social isolation back in Sardinia.</p><p>“The <em>fuck</em>,” Jay said, pressing his hands against the table with a scowl. “You don’t know <em>shit</em>, blondie.”</p><p>“I already told you I was speculating,” Chad said. “It could be none of those-”</p><p>“Yeah, it fucking isn’t,” Jay snapped. “I flirt because I want to, and <em>that’s it</em>.”</p><p>“Getting all defensive about it is a good way to drive that point home,” Chad offered, because he actually was an asshole, and Jay started snarling all over again. </p><p>He stood up, paced a few furious paths beside the table before flopping back onto his chair with a sigh, snatching up a sandwich with a frown.  “I don’t think I like you anymore.”</p><p>“Props to you for clearly communicating that,” Chad said, offering a genuine consolation that Jay didn’t seem to know what to do with. </p><p>Obviously, he wasn’t used to having his actions validated by other people.</p><p>“You’re so <em>weird</em>,” Jay settled on, taking a vindictive bite of his sandwich. “Like, all of Auradon is weird, and <em>Ben</em> is weird, but you’re super weird.”</p><p>Chad took the comment in stride. “Thank you,” he said. “I’m glad to be a unique experience.”</p><p>“I’m starting to see why Ben keeps you locked up, though,” Jay said. “I think it’s because the world isn’t ready for you.”</p><p>“And they never <em>will</em> be if I’m stuck in here all the damn time,” Chad snapped, shoving a forkful of salad into his mouth and focusing his anger on chewing, because it was that or punching the table, and Ben always got so sad when he saw the dents. “Whatever, did you actually have any questions for me or did you just come to see if I was naked?”</p><p>“Can the answer be both?” Jay asked. “We- <em>I</em> have questions about this schedule shit.  Like – how did they choose our classes?  Do we have to go to all of them?  What exactly <em>are</em> the rules here, because it seems like there’s a code everyone else is following but we don’t know it.  And why the fuck do I need teamwork if I’m already good at Tourney?”</p><p>“Because if you don’t pass the damn ball from time-to-time it’s really easy for the other team to predict and counteract your moves,” Chad said, choosing to focus on the last problem first. “As for the other stuff – yes, you do have to go to all of your classes, that’s part of your grade here.  Yes, there is a code of conduct, and I’ll brief you on it and give you a copy, as well as explain the unwritten stuff.” Because Ben apparently hadn’t done that. “And if you’re asking me the first question, then you probably weren’t consulted on your schedules, and we should talk to Fairy Godmother to get that sorted out.”  He stared at the food, then stared at Jay, who was already in the process of shoving the rest of the second sandwich in his mouth.  “We’ll speak to Fairy Godmother first,” Chad decided. “Then we’ll get you a pass so you can miss the rest of your classes while I give you the orientation they apparently didn’t bother with.”</p><p>“Are you gonna put on pants?” Jay asked, staring pointedly at the slit in Ben’s robe that revealed Chad’s bitten up thigh.</p><p>“I’ll steal Ben’s clothes if I have to,” Chad decided, and then elected to ignore Jay’s aggravated groan of disappointment when he went to do just that.</p><p>Chad hoped the rest of his life wouldn’t be spent cleaning up Ben’s messes, but he was beginning to get the feeling it would be <em>just </em>that.</p><p>Oh joy of joys.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Alright, I’ll be honest – I had aspirations for this to be a much bigger thing than it was.  It’s mostly an exploration on absurd contracts that could be tangentially justified by bloodline quirks, inspired by a flood of nobles eager to appease the United States of Auradon crown like, a little too much.  It was a dumb kink idea, but aside from this first chapter, the exhibitionist stuff sort of petered out for me, and led to… well, nonsense.  Sexy, dumb nonsense.  </p><p>This story will consist of 4 chapters of story content.  As always, please let me know if I missed something in the tags.  I prefer to ere on the side of caution with these things, but when you stare at something for long enough, it can be easy to lose the details :)</p><p>I update once a week, generally on Sundays, but because things have been so crazy lately, I decided to make an effort to update twice a week.  So there will be one update on Sunday and one update on Wednesday/Thursday for now :D  </p><p>Just a heads up – I update the story tags as I go in order to avoid spoilers.  So characters, pairings, content warnings – all will be updated in correlation to the appropriate chapter as they are posted. </p><p>Story notes:</p><p>Sardinia is my name for Chad’s kingdom, which is canonically known as ‘Cinderellasburg’.  I changed the name into something I felt sounded like more of a real kingdom. </p><p>Shoutout to the amended version of Bianca Del Rio’s tagline ‘Beauty fades, dumb is forever’.  What a queen. </p><p>I try to make a personal distinction between the United States of Auradon (the union of kingdoms) and Central Auradon (the name of Adam/Belle’s kingdom in specific) in my fics.  They aren’t one in the same for me, but the naming conventions can be a little confusing, which is why I try to stick to them. </p><p>It seems that no matter how long or short my stories are, I’ve always got to touch on some kind of radical social/political reform.  Like, it’s inevitable.  Gotta embrace that change ;)</p><p>Second shoutout to that very tiny, itty-bitty reference to the Producers at the end there.  Oh joy of joys, oh dream of dreams ^_^</p><p>Until next time :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Gaining Allies</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jay’s visits became a daily thing, partly so he could interrogate Chad for information he would verify elsewhere (this was mostly supposition on Chad’s part, but it seemed like a very Jay-thing to do) and partly so he could goad Chad into helping him with his schoolwork under the guise of laziness, when in reality Jay (and by extension, the rest of the transfer students) had so little understanding for how normal class schedules were supposed to <em>work</em> that it made Chad furious all over again.</p>
<p>So Jay’s study periods actually became study periods, much though he grumbled, because Chad’s explanations of Auradon culture could be helpful and passed on to his cohorts.</p>
<p>“Why do I need this again?” Jay groaned, frowning at his vocabulary worksheet. “Who cares if I know like, five different ways to say ‘<em>ugly</em>’?”</p>
<p>“It’s so you’re more well-rounded,” Chad explained for the eight hundredth time.  He had managed to get an entire outfit that day, and granted, the outfit was Ben’s PJs (Chad was beginning to suspect his clothes were just gone for all eternity), but he had underwear on and that was a triumph in itself. “That’s why the Auradon education system requires a broad baseline of subjects for participating students.  So it can be guaranteed that our students have the same basic understandings from which to build as you explore more specialized pursuits.”</p>
<p>“Talking to you is like talking to a textbook,” Jay grumbled, poking at his vocab worksheet. “A sexy textbook, but still a textbook.”  With a put-upon sigh, he collapsed against the table, the epitome of dramatics that Jay insisted he never indulged in. “This is so stupid.  I need a better reason to learn this than ‘just cuz’.” </p>
<p>“If you finish your vocab sheet and your math homework, I’ll give you a head rub,” Chad said, not looking up from his own homework.  He didn’t want to fall behind either.</p>
<p>Jay gave him a surprised look. “I was expecting a dumb pep talk, but yeah, that’s much better.” He straightened up with a grin. “I don’t know why I ever think you can be predictable.”</p>
<p>“It’s a gift,” Chad sniffed, and then he was graced with a solid half hour of silence while Jay completed the assigned homework.</p>
<p>“Okay.” Jay grinned when he was done, something that became only more triumphant when Chad double-checked his work and deemed it acceptable. “Head rub.”</p>
<p>“Head rub,” Chad agreed, sliding out of his chair and moving so he could stand in front of Jay, who had turned his chair out from the table.  Chad had learned through observation that Jay was more guarded whenever Chad stood behind him, or was angled at any of his particular blind spots, so Chad had taught himself to account for such things, staying safely in the other teen’s line of sight while he pulled Jay’s knitted cap off.</p>
<p>The other teen sighed.</p>
<p>Chad was not impressed. “I wasn’t going to rub your dick.”</p>
<p>“A guy can dream,” Jay mused, and then his eyes were falling shut while Chad worked his magic.</p>
<p>Granted, most of his knowledge was purely theoretical based on what he’d read from books, but dragging his fingers through Jay’s silky locks seemed more or less like a straightforward process.  The other teen seemed to approve, at least, his lips parting in a happy groan as Chad scratched at a particular spot.</p>
<p>“Oh <em>fuck</em>,” Jay moaned, his head falling backwards as his bones seemed to turn to jelly. “<em>Shit</em>, that’s good.  Why haven’t we done this before?”</p>
<p>“Because you haven’t earned it,” Chad grumbled, though inside he was preening.  He was doing something well, he was helping, and there was something sort of satisfying about that.  He didn’t really get to participate much, with Ben.  Those instances of contact were mostly instigated and controlled by the other prince, but this- it was harmless, and Chad was doing well, and that was satisfying.</p>
<p>“Can we end all sessions like this?” Jay moaned – loudly, with a deep <em>affection</em>, his dumb hopeless voice echoing through the room.  “Because you feel fucking great.  I mean- I feel- <em>fuck</em>.”</p>
<p>“Don’t strain yourself there, bud,” Chad said, smirking as he took Jay apart with a few scratches, and he was likely imagining the light flush that spread across the bridge of the other teen’s nose, but wouldn’t that be something if it was actually there? </p>
<p>“Chad,” Jay groaned. “<em>Chaaaaad</em>.”</p>
<p>Chad was torn between telling the other teen to get a hold of himself and celebrating this minor victory over Jay, so much so that he missed the fact that they’d gained company until he felt Ben pressing against his back.</p>
<p>“<em>Chad</em>,” he growled, his hands falling possessively at the blond’s hips. “Is this why you smell like Jay?”</p>
<p>“Oh fuck,” Jay said, entirely unhelpful.</p>
<p>Chad rolled his eyes. “I’m allowed to have friends, Ben.”</p>
<p>“You shouldn’t play with them, like this,” Ben said, every word sounding like a tried-and-true effort.  “They’ll get the wrong idea.”</p>
<p>“And what is that idea?” Jay asked, forever incorrigible. “For those of us who are dumb and need it spelled out.”</p>
<p>Ben growled.  Chad was pretty sure he saw Jay shudder with a muted sort of delight.</p>
<p>“Chad is <em>mine</em>,” Ben rumbled, and that was all the warning Chad got before he found himself more or less shoved into Jay’s lap.</p>
<p>It was an awkward position, because it left him straddling the other teen’s legs, Jay’s hands moving to steady his hips on reflex.  Ben let out this low sort of purred thing, and then Chad’s pants and underwear were <em>yanked</em> down his thighs, leaving Jay gaping at him, as though it was anything he hadn’t seen.</p>
<p>“Mine,” Ben repeated, and then there was the sound of lubricant being squished from the bottle, applied hastily to greedy fingers that wasted little time sliding into Chad’s thoroughly stretched entrance.</p>
<p>“Ben,” Chad huffed, attempted to object but then he was moaning because Ben had found <em>that spot</em>, the one that made Chad go to putty every single time.  “Ben, don’t make him-”</p>
<p>“Please make him,” Jay said, his focus split hungrily between Ben’s snarled expression and the rising interest between Chad’s legs. “Make him real good.”</p>
<p>“<em>Jay</em>,” Chad moaned, earning an angry growl from Ben.</p>
<p>“Not Jay, <em>me</em>,” Ben said, slipping another finger into Chad and scissoring him wide. “Ben.”</p>
<p>“Greedy,” Chad gasped, trying to hold onto some kind of control over the situation and refusing to acknowledge that they were far past that point, because he could see Jay’s erection straining against his pants and Ben was going to smell that, or the beast was going to and then Chad would have hell to pay for it somehow.</p>
<p>“<em>Yes</em>,” Ben hissed, burying his face in the curve of Chad’s neck and breathing in deep. “So greedy.  Such a greedy, selfish thing.”</p>
<p>“Holy shit,” Jay gasped. “What the fuck.  Is this how Ben always gets with sex?”</p>
<p>“Pretty much,” Chad moaned, realizing that Jay and the rest of the school must get to see the Ben that was underneath the rage of hormones Chad dealt with on a regular basis.  They were fucking welcome, then. “Ben-”</p>
<p>“Mine, mine, mine,” Ben was panting, nipping at Chad’s neck before reaching forward to-</p>
<p>“Holy <em>fuck</em>.” Jay spasmed in his chair, unprepared for Beast Ben’s grabby hands that were strong and determined and could work a zipper in no time flat, that could undo his pants and shove his ratty boxers out of the way until Jay’s length was entirely guided out of his clothes. “<em>Shiiiit</em>.”</p>
<p>“<em>Mine</em>,” Ben snapped, and then he was rutting Chad and Jay’s groins together, giving them the occasional pump and while Chad had never thought he’d be burdened with the feeling of anyone else’s genitals sliding against his aside from Ben’s, especially a <em>guy’s</em>, he now got to live with the vision of wanton Jay, live with the feel of him sliding against his most intimate area, feel him leak and leak in turn until Jay was actively trying to help them grind together.</p>
<p>“Yes,” Ben hissed, and then he was sliding <em>into</em> Chad, who could only moan, burying his face against Jay’s shoulder because no matter how many times he did this with Ben it was always weird and always a lot and always felt too good to be real. </p>
<p>“Ben,” Chad gasped. “Ben, Ben, you’re so-”</p>
<p>“<em>Pretty</em>,” Ben breathed, licking at Chad’s neck and pressing hot lips against his cheek before he was recalculating, craning his neck upwards and dragging Jay into an absolutely filthy kiss.</p>
<p>A kiss that Jay enthusiastically reciprocated.</p>
<p>“Pretty boy,” Ben huffed, rutting into Chad and nipping at Jay’s lips. “Pretty boys.”</p>
<p>“You’re um- not so bad looking yourself,” Jay said, and that was definitely a blush now, a quiet sort of appreciation Chad could feel when he throbbed against Chad.</p>
<p>Ben offered him a feral grin, one Chad rarely saw, because he was rarely enthusiastic about their trysts. “Thank you, Precious,” he said, cupping Jay’s cheek with a tenderness the other teen shivered into. “I’ll pamper you later.  Promise.”</p>
<p>“<em>Fuck</em>,” Jay said, and then Ben was pumping them together with a ferocity that left Chad gasping for air, his core shuddering with each of Ben’s thrusts, until they were all tumbling over the edge with broken shouts, leaving a mess on Jay’s clothes that couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than what it actually was. </p>
<p>“Hot damn,” Jay said later, when they were all catching their breath. “And Mal thought you guys were repressed.”</p>
<p>“Most Auradon folk probably are,” Chad commiserated, at least until Ben pulled him out of Jay’s lap and carried him over to the bed, meaning the conversation was over.</p>
<p>At least until a few minutes later, when Ben deposited a blushing Jay right down next to Chad and proceeded to strip him out of his clothes.</p>
<p>“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Chad said when Beast Ben was frowning at Jay’s boots as though they’d personally offended him with their audacity to have laces. “Seriously, this won’t affect your stay here at all, even if he is the Prince of Auradon.  You can leave right now.”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Jay said, grinning with a sort of fondness when Ben let out a sound of victory at successfully removing Jay’s boots. “I am definitely staying.”</p>
<p>It was his funeral.</p>
<p>“Just let me know if you need to tag out, or something,” Chad said while Ben eased off Jay’s pants and underwear, kissing up his legs until he could fumble with the sleeveless vest thing Jay liked to sport as a top. “He wasn’t joking about pampering you.”</p>
<p>“Sure.” Jay rolled his eyes, likely thinking that Chad was underselling this.  “I’ll let you know when I get tired of all the sex, mister-”</p>
<p>It was sort of satisfying when Jay broke off into a moan, Ben deepthroating him then and there with a level of skill that would leave Jay breathless in seconds.  Compared to Ben’s first attempt, he was a seasoned pro now, and Jay owed Chad about a million thank yous for all the trial and effort it took to get to that point.</p>
<p>“Holy <em>shit</em>,” Jay said, and then he was falling apart in Ben’s mouth, chest heaving all the while.</p>
<p>Chad rolled onto his side and decided to enjoy the show. “Hope you’re ready for what you wished for,” Chad said, smirking.</p>
<p>Jay’s only response was a broken moan, because Ben kept teasing him.  Now that he’d gotten a taste, there was no way he was stopping anytime soon.  His stamina and dumb beast pheromones would see to that.</p>
<p>But hey, maybe that was what Jay wanted in life.  Chad certainly wanted a break, so-</p>
<p>They both won, he guessed.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>After the blowjob, Ben ended up flipping Jay over and eating him out until he was croaking against the pillows, cheeks dusted in a sinfully pretty flush.  When he fell apart, he left a mess against the sheets that smeared against his pelvis when Ben flipped him back over, but honestly, the bed had seen much worse, and Jay seemed to be teetering between exhaustion and ecstasy when Ben began fingering him in earnest, landing on ecstasy by the time Ben got three fingers into him.</p>
<p>“Shit, shit, damn, shit,” Jay was chanting, mostly under his breath because Ben kept complimenting him, kept saying how good Jay tasted and how pretty he looked and how lovely he was, and each of these comments seemed to take Jay by greater surprise, like he thought he couldn’t earn such a thing from a prince.</p>
<p>“<em>Ben</em>,” Jay moaned when he was hard again, overwhelmed tears leaking from the corners of his eyes. “Ben, I-”</p>
<p>“Like this,” Ben said, and then he was posing Jay over Chad, having the transfer student press Chad’s legs towards his chest so he could nudge against his slick entrance with a sigh. </p>
<p>“<em>Ben</em>,” Jay groaned again when he was eased <em>into</em> Chad, the blond gasping all the while. “He’s so- fuck, even after you- he’s so <em>tight</em>-”</p>
<p>“For you,” Ben said, setting his hands on Jay’s hips as he angled himself behind him. “For me.  For us.  So tight and you’re gonna be tight.”</p>
<p>“<em>Ben</em>,” Jay broke off with a groan, and then Chad was pretty sure the other prince was sheathing himself in Jay, using the force to push the other teen deeper into Chad, until he was likely entirely overstimulated.</p>
<p>“I’m gonna-” Jay gasped, twitching inside Chad. “I’m gonna- <em>Ben</em>.”</p>
<p>“Do what you need to do,” Ben ordered, beginning to move his hips in earnest.</p>
<p>Jay didn’t really move, letting Ben do all the work for him.  He took what the other prince offered with loud mewls while his hair spilled around his shoulders, sweat beading on his temple and eyes squeezed shut as he was overwhelmed and ripped to pieces. </p>
<p>“Chad, Chad, Ben, I’m gonna-” Jay gasped, beginning to tremble helplessly. “I’m gonna-”</p>
<p>He fell apart with a shout, filling Chad with a slick that mixed with Ben’s and seemed to squish out of him, which shouldn’t be hot but again, <em>pheromones</em>, so Chad was <em>biologically inclined</em> to think it was, was inclined to moan and work a hand between his own legs until he came with a whine. </p>
<p>Ben followed not long soon after, rutting into Jay with a flushed expression before he came apart with a <em>growl</em>, hips shuddering with each pulse. </p>
<p>When he finally pulled out, he turned Jay so that he could curl beside Chad, who hadn’t been tormented nearly as much as usual but still felt stupidly spent.</p>
<p>“Holy shit,” Jay muttered, the words seeming to become his new catch phrase as he struggled to calm himself. “Is this what you guys do every day?”</p>
<p>“Variations of,” Chad said instead of ‘pretty much’, even if that was true.  He craned a look over his shoulder, where Ben was nuzzling into his back. “Go run us a bath, you asshole.”</p>
<p>“Cuddles,” Ben said, burying his nose in Chad’s curls petulantly. “Five-minute cuddles, then bath.”</p>
<p>“Start the bath and then you’ll have <em>ten</em> minutes of cuddles while the water fills,” Chad said, repeating the same argument they had every day, and just like every other time, Ben squeezed him close once before forcing himself out of bed.</p>
<p>“I’ll be back,” he promised, sounding closer to his usual self but his cheeks were still flushed, until he disappeared into his bathroom with silent footsteps.</p>
<p>“Wow,” Jay said, without irony. “He is completely different.”</p>
<p>“Like this?  Yes,” Chad said. “Look, if you’re not careful you’re going to end up getting roped into this every day.”</p>
<p>“I can do that?” Jay asked, perking up when he should be nodding solemnly because Chad was trying to give him good advice. “You think he might want to do that again?”</p>
<p>Based on <em>that</em> response, Chad was pretty sure that was something Ben had been wanting to do for weeks now.  It would certainly explain the increased time he spent smelling Chad.  He must have been looking for Jay’s scent.</p>
<p>“Yes,” Chad said, deciding not to get into the details. “But you don’t have to-”</p>
<p>“I want to,” Jay said, so forcefully that he started to flush, and yet despite this, his determination did not waver.</p>
<p>Chad sighed. “Let me know if you change your mind,” he said. “Because Ben will help you guys either way, you don’t have to trade sexual favors-”</p>
<p>“Dude,” Jay interrupted him with a sigh. “Some people just like having sex.  This is not complicated.”</p>
<p>“I’m just covering the <em>bases</em>,” Chad snapped, and then there was no more talking because Ben had returned, curling himself around Chad and squeezing him tight with a quick grope between his legs before moving to repeat the process with Jay, nuzzling the transfer student’s shoulder carefully to spread his scent. </p>
<p>“Mine, mine, mine,” Ben chanted under his breath, a contented smile pulling at his lips.</p>
<p>Chad sighed. “You’re going to have to talk to Fairy Godmother later to get his work delivered to your room.”</p>
<p><em>That</em> got him a brilliant smile, one so bright it made Jay flush under its intensity, because Ben had just earned another live-in bedmate without really even trying.</p>
<p>“But you can only bother him in here,” Chad cautioned. “And he’s still doing Tourney.”</p>
<p>“<em>Tourney</em>,” Ben grumbled, stroking between Jay’s legs in a move that was closer to a caress than a promise to instigate something. “You smell so good during Tourney.  I hate it.”</p>
<p>“<em>Aw</em>,” Jay said, slipping into a teasing sort of tone to hide how genuinely thrilled he was by this information. “It hates you too, Benjamin.”</p>
<p>“Would have fucked you on the field if I didn’t have Chad,” Ben said, the crassness of the statement making Jay shudder, which somehow brought more of normal Ben back. “But also that would have been deplorable.  <em>F</em><em>uck</em>, I’m sorry Jay-”</p>
<p>“Hey, no, go back to saying nice things,” Jay said, putting on a confident front even though there seemed to be a hesitance in his demeanor, like he wasn’t used to asking for such things. “About how sexy I am.”</p>
<p>“You’re very sexy,” Ben said, now that the sex fog had lifted. “But you’re worth way more than <em>that</em>.”</p>
<p>“I know,” Jay said with a lightness that indicated he did not know. “I figured that out with um- Chad.  He’s very smart.”</p>
<p>“So smart,” Ben muttered, like he marveled at that fact every day but didn’t know how to articulate it. “You’re both really great.”</p>
<p>“And we also both appease the beast,” Chad said, deciding he was done getting touchy feely for today. “We get it.  I already told Jay he didn’t have to do this-”</p>
<p>“Want to,” Jay said stubbornly, making Ben shudder.</p>
<p>“Just,” Ben swallowed. “If you change your mind- it won’t be held against you at all.  I don’t want to put you in a position where you feel forced-”</p>
<p>“Will you guys <em>shut up</em>, already?” Jay groaned. “I get it, you’re good.  For whatever reason, you want to be nice to me-”</p>
<p>“Because you are a human,” Chad said. “Who deserves basic decencies like a consideration for his feelings.”</p>
<p>The words seemed to have the same effect as any of the sexual advances they had just vigorously engaged in, making Jay move in a full body shiver.  It made Ben frown, not from Jay’s appreciation, but from something distinctly sad, like Jay hadn’t been offered such things before, and that was enough to make Chad give in with a sigh, moving forward so he could cuddle Jay as well.</p>
<p>It made the other teen startle, though blush into the contact, not seeming to know what to do with the attention of two princes.</p>
<p>“Fuck you guys,” Jay grumbled, refusing to look at either of them. “You should think I’m scary, like the rest of the school.”</p>
<p>“Then the rest of the school doesn’t know you,” Chad scoffed. “Because you are far from scary.”</p>
<p>“And not your dad,” Ben repeated, cuddling Jay close. “You’re Jay, and I’m sorry it took so long to get you here-”</p>
<p>“Okay,” Jay interrupted with an obvious sort of desperation. “Let’s not talk about that right now.”</p>
<p>“Bath time,” Chad said, earning a grateful look from Jay while Ben grumbled, likely having an entire monologue worked up about how great Jay was. </p>
<p>Well, he’d get to use it later.  There would be plenty of opportunity, Chad was sure.</p>
<p>“Bath time,” Ben confirmed, gathering Jay into his arms in a move that would probably never fail to make the Agraben flush. “We can save the heart-to-heart for later.”</p>
<p>“Or never,” Jay offered and was ignored, Ben marching him determinately into the bathroom.</p>
<p>For a moment, Chad thought maybe Ben would forget about him, might be swayed by the newness of Jay, be so consumed by it that the thought of Chad slipped his mind entirely.  He wondered, in that pondering, how he would feel about that.  If he would be disappointed or relieved.</p>
<p>Part of him wondered if he would feel scared.</p>
<p>But that was a stupid thought, one he immediately dismissed when Ben returned for him a minute later, carrying Chad with the same care and dedication he used for Jay, until Chad and the other teen were cuddled against each other in a bubble bath, Ben doing his damnedest to dote and kiss on both of them until they were relaxed piles of putty in his hands (after he’d brushed his teeth, because Chad had damn <em>lines</em>). </p>
<p>“This um- wasn’t how I pictured our study session going,” Jay admitted, a pale flush dusting his cheeks when Ben began to shampoo his hair with an acute sort of determination. </p>
<p>“Yeah,” Chad sighed. “That’s generally how these things go.”</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>They developed a new sort of routine over the next few days.  Jay didn’t spend all his time in Ben’s quarters, because one of the transfer students disappearing from the public eye wouldn’t have sat well with anyone, and he still had obligations to his friends and Tourney.  Still, Ben had arranged it so that Jay was his new ‘roommate’, leaving the Carlos Chad had heard about with his own room while Jay’s stuff got moved into one of Ben’s many spare dressers.  The transfer student spent his study hall and most of his time after-class in Ben’s suite, talking and gossiping and getting heavily sexed up on a regular basis.</p>
<p>“You’re not mad about this?” Jay asked quietly one day, when Ben had been pulled away to a council meeting and he and Chad were actually studying for once.</p>
<p>Chad blinked up from his homework.  With the addition of Jay, he’d managed to graduate to wearing either Ben or Jay’s clothing – at least, the new clothes Ben had purchased for Jay in a determined show of his affections.  When the first of the deliveries arrived, Jay had stared at the abundance of options with an open sort of confusion, like he didn’t know what to do with so much clothing, which had struck Ben with a deep sorrow that had him buying clothes for the other transfer students as well.  On Jay and Chad’s recommendation, he’d also arranged for a bounty of material and sewing notions to be delivered to Evie’s dorm room so she could sew and design to her heart’s content, and Chad wasn’t sure how that had turned out, only that Mal was annoyed and Evie ecstatic and Jay had turned up a few days later with a new coat for Chad he actually got to wear, constructed from light blue fabric and sewn with golden thread. </p>
<p>“You realize with you around, I actually get some time to like, breathe, right?” Chad asked, raising a brow at him. “And a chance to talk to someone other than Ben?”</p>
<p>Or the school administrators, when Chad was making adjustments to the transfer students’ schedules, because Carlos and Evie kept testing into harder classes and Audrey kept being a dick to Mal, who’d done nothing other than exist in her immediate vicinity. </p>
<p>Jay stared at him for a long moment, as though searching Chad for alternative motives, and Chad allowed him that time, knowing Jay deserved whatever comforts he could glean for himself. “Okay,” he said eventually. “As long as you’re sure.”</p>
<p>“I’m sure,” Chad said, and left it at that.</p>
<p>It was sort of touching, that he cared that much.  Chad gave props to their potential friendship and decided not to look into it further.</p>
<p>The new equilibrium was an odd one, adding someone else (another guy) into the mix for their intimate times, but Jay really did help share the load.  And sometimes, on a whim, they would share soft kisses, because you couldn’t receive that much sexual stimulation without needing a gentler sort of outlet for that adjustment.  Still, it was nice to have someone who was kind of a friend, at least someone who Chad could bitch about Ben with, even if Jay seemed hopelessly enamored with the guy, as little as he’d own up to it. </p>
<p>Jay’s presence also seemed to bring a sort of balance to Ben, making him less consumed with the thought of copulation and more intent on doting, on caring and being a normal, balanced human instead of a sex-crazed beast. </p>
<p>So overall Chad was fine with it, and enjoyed the new normal, at least until the day things seemed to change yet again. </p>
<p>The evening started a bit differently than any other, because for once Ben had parked himself on the sidelines, lounging comfortably in a chair positioned beside his large bed while he watched Jay and Chad trade lazy kisses, the two of them taking their time removing each other’s clothes.  Strange though it was, there was also something sort of thrilling about putting on a show for Ben, even if it wasn’t a particularly good one.  It was a testament to how Chad’s body had adjusted to the constant sex that he was already getting excited by this, though Jay wasn’t much better, and Chad could feel <em>his</em> interest pressing against his thigh while they moved together in lazy ruts. </p>
<p>Jay was in the process of kissing up his shoulder, aiming to suck on some of the marks Ben had left behind because that always made him happy, when the doors to the room seemed to fly open, a furious Mal Bertha following in their wake, one hand outstretched as though she’d used magic to do away with the locks. </p>
<p>On second thought, she probably had.</p>
<p>“I don’t care who you are or what you get us,” she snapped, shutting the doors with another sharp flick of her hand. “You can’t keep hogging what’s <em>mine</em>.”</p>
<p>Her eyes were flaring an unearthly sort of green, too bright to be anything but magical, and a challenge like that could only have Ben shoving to his feet, teeth bared in a ferocious <em>growl</em> that rumbled Chad to his very bones.</p>
<p>He found himself off the bed before he could really think about it, forcing himself in front of Ben before the other prince could do something truly stupid.  Chad vaguely remembered something Jay had said about Mal’s half-Fae quirks, about her <em>possessiveness</em>, but he hadn’t really had the time to look into it. </p>
<p>More the fool him.</p>
<p>“Calm down,” Chad snapped, grabbing the back of Ben’s head and yanking his face into the curve of Chad’s neck, where Jay had just been licking.  The fresh combination of their two scents should do something to mitigate the rising rage and it did, even if Ben’s body was still wrought with tension as he shuddered into the smell.</p>
<p>“Mal,” Jay said, his voice laced with confusion as he slid out of the bed, moving towards his friend. “I thought you were okay with this.”</p>
<p>“I was!” Mal pressed, and there was a small pulse of magic that seemed to raise all the objects on Ben’s desk a few inches before dropping them with an unceremonious <em>plop</em>. “But he can’t keep you here when you were <em>mine</em> first.”</p>
<p>“…Mal.” Jay seemed at a total loss.</p>
<p>“Okay, clearly there have been some misunderstandings here,” Chad said, craning to look over his shoulder to get his eyes on Mal. “We um… obviously didn’t know you had a claim, or we would have asked you first.” Ben growled at the very thought of it, Mal baring her teeth in response in a move that made Jay shudder. “But since we mucked that up – Mal, would you be okay with sharing?”</p>
<p>By Auradon rules, Jay was free to do as he pleased so long as it didn’t violate any laws, but Jay was born and raised on the Isle, which functioned under a different set of understandings.  Though this was Chad’s first time meeting Mal, he knew from the way Jay spoke of her that the other teen respected her a great deal, and as such, having her this unhappy with their arrangement was unacceptable.  Compromises needed to be made.</p>
<p>Mal considered this with gleaming eyes, Ben’s fingers seeming to clutch harder onto Chad’s hips.</p>
<p>Eventually, she narrowed her gaze into a fierce glare. “I’ll share if he does.”</p>
<p>Ben’s beast rumbled an immediate protest.</p>
<p>“Don’t be stupid,” Chad chided, poking the side of Ben’s head before he could really get started. “This is a generous offer – she doesn’t have to make it.”</p>
<p>When he looked back to her, Mal’s smile had shifted into something close to vindictive delight – likely because Chad had acknowledged and respected her claim.</p>
<p>Perhaps just to be petulant, Ben wrapped his arms around Chad’s waist, squeezing him close. “…ours?”</p>
<p>Mal did not cackle, but it looked like she wanted to.</p>
<p>“<em>Ours</em>,” she confirmed, and then she was striding forward, grabbing Jay by his hair and tugging him down into a filthy kiss.  For all his bravado, Jay hadn’t been expecting it, letting out a startled sound that immediately melted into a moan when she attempted to eat his face.  Just as he was starting to get worked up again, Mal shoved him back onto the bed and moved onward, closer to Ben and Chad-</p>
<p>Deceptively strong fingers caught his chin and Chad still wasn’t ready for the kiss, wasn’t ready for the way she easily manhandled him and repeated what she’d done to Jay on him, nipping and sucking at his lips while Ben rumbled in something that was a mix between objection and pleasure. </p>
<p>Chad’s head was spinning by the time she was done with it, and then he found himself pushed onto the bed beside Jay who was groaning, fondling himself through the thin material of his sweatpants with a flushed expression of want. </p>
<p>“Fuck, Mal,” he groaned, letting his head fall back in pleasure. “Why didn’t you say anything?”</p>
<p>“I shouldn’t <em>have</em> to,” she snapped, and then she was shoving Ben at Jay while she climbed into Chad’s lap, and that was- there was a girl in Chad’s lap, and granted, that girl was the daughter of Maleficent but she was also very pretty and very female and for a hot second Chad didn’t know what to do. “Gonna mark you,” she said, hurriedly stripping him out of the rest of his clothes.  Beside them, Ben rushed to do the same with Jay, who had no complaints. “Stupid thoughtful dipshit prince fuck.  I hate you.”</p>
<p>“I l-like him too, Mal,” Jay moaned, and then Ben was on him, taking his coherence as a personal sort of injury. </p>
<p>What happened next was sort of a blur.  What had begun as a casual sort of evening devolved into Mal enthusiastically fingering Chad wide before <em>inventing</em> a spell so she could fuck him into Jay, Ben doing the same on the other side.  As though that wasn’t enough, Ben and Mal then switched partners, Ben riding <em>Chad</em> for the very first time ever and he was so hot and so tight and Chad didn’t stand a chance but at least Jay seemed just as incoherent with Mal riding him, the sorceress vicious and demanding and everything Jay seemed to need.  </p>
<p>When it was over they collapsed in a messy, naked pile, Chad doing his best not to stare at Mal’s bare body because this was not how princes were supposed to treat ladies, and Jay seemed entirely blissed out on cloud nine.</p>
<p>“Wow,” he gasped, sweat gathered on his brow and smiling as Mal seemed determined to lick him clean. “So much for sharing the load, huh?”</p>
<p>“Whatever,” Chad said, because he was out of fucks to give. </p>
<p>But at least he might sort of have a girlfriend now, so that was something.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>For the record – gaining a girlfriend was not worth the tradeoff of Mal bringing to life Ben’s ferocious competitive spirit, because what had begun to mellow out immediately skyrocketed into a constant battle to outdo one another, to the point where Jay actually had to start missing classes as well, because even he couldn’t keep up with the demand.  It was no surprise that Mal moved in with them, and while the first week was, without question, <em>rough</em>, to the point where Chad had to schedule timed retreats so he and Jay could have a chance to freshen up in the bathroom and, you know, <em>hydrate</em>, by week two, Mal and Ben had learned the benefit of working together to rock Chad and Jay’s worlds. </p>
<p>They bonded over their appreciation for their claimed humans, and while Ben would have doted on them either way, there was the extra benefit of Mal’s appreciation, and Mal tried to match that in turn, taking care of Jay and Chad because she took her duties seriously.  So sex marathons eventually gave way to massages, to cuddles and head rubs, and quiet praises that always made Jay flush and Chad uneasy, until they were sharing meals together and he guessed it was sort of like a date?  Chad didn’t know.  He tried not to think about it too hard. </p>
<p>Kindness didn’t seem to come easy to Mal, or at the very least demonstrating it, because it wasn’t something that helped you survive the Isle.  But it seemed like the more she did it, the more she liked it, until she was preparing baths for them and giving out light kisses and drawing them pictures for the simple reason that she could.  When she and Ben looked at them, it was with something like pride, and Chad didn’t know what to do with that either. </p>
<p>So he did what he always did and tried to play it off, acting ‘salty’ and trying not to get too lost to what could very well be a temporary situation.</p>
<p>“Why are you so <em>fussy</em>?” Mal asked one day, when she was magic balls-deep in Chad who was writhing against Ben’s bed, the blond spitting out curses because if he didn’t, he’d be helplessly gasping.</p>
<p>“H-He’s always like that,” Jay moaned, head pillowed in the fold of his arms while Ben rutted him into the bed. “Don’t know why, though.”</p>
<p>“Because I’m an <em>asshole</em>,” Chad snapped, echoing the words of his grandfather.</p>
<p>“Or, you’re c-charming,” Jay said, somehow managing the coherency to shoot Chad a wink, and that-</p>
<p>Charming.  Right.  Chad had given up on being charming years ago when it became obvious that A) he would never be charming <em>enough</em> and B) no one gave a shit about his personality anyway. </p>
<p>It made him realize that there really was no point to it all.  If no one was really ever going to care for him, why should he try to stop the asshole he so inherently needed to be?</p>
<p>“Hey,” Mal said, squeezing his thighs carefully, like she’d noticed he’d drifted. “Stay with me.  I want you here.”</p>
<p>“Right,” Chad said, and then he bit at his bottom lip until Mal was through with him, until he’d left a mess on his stomach that she cleaned up with an eager tongue. </p>
<p>She even sucked on his lip later, tonguing at the places where he’d bitten through skin as a sort of unspoken apology.</p>
<p>It was weird.  It was all weird.</p>
<p>But it was the new normal, so Chad guessed he was okay with it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hooray for emotional distancing survival measures I guess??  Except not at all.  Not at all.  </p>
<p>Hey guys, thank you so much for the feedback!  I’m sorry for the delayed posting, things have gotten kind of crazy over here.  I lost power early Monday morning and didn’t get it back until today, and when I did retreat to somewhere with power, the internet went down.  So this is the first substantial block of time I’ve been able to be online, and I just wanted to say thanks for all the lovely support!!! It was really nice to see after the week I’ve had.  I really appreciate it, and I will be replying, assuming my internet doesn’t go down again, but I wanted to take this moment to reiterate my gratitude for our wonderful Descendants community &lt;3 </p>
<p>The next update will come Sunday as scheduled, assuming I have power and internet.  If they go down again, I’ll try to post as soon as I can :)</p>
<p>Story notes:</p>
<p>While it is not expressly stated, Mal is on birth control – so while the heat of the moment didn’t allow for condoms, she was still safe.  This is a story note that is intended for my fellow anxious readers out there, it’s all good.  </p>
<p>Until next time :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Downward Slope</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>GENERAL WARNING – This chapter marks the beginning of a sort of depressed spiral from Chad.  It begins in the third scene and devolves from there, and while it’s nothing graphic, it is something I thought you might want to be braced for.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They got about two weeks of this new equilibrium before things changed again, though with the way Jay had described his relationship with his friends, Chad probably should have seen it coming. </p>
<p>“We want in too,” Evie declared, standing with her arms folded across her chest, seemingly unmovable but subtly defensive.  Carlos lingered behind her, having picked the lock for both of them, and while he was less obvious about expressing his needs, he obviously didn’t disagree with her statement. </p>
<p>Mal’s gaze flared green from her position atop Jay’s lap.  She shared a look with Ben, who had been doting on Chad’s chest, before they both paused, sliding away from their respective partners and off of the bed to address the issue head on.</p>
<p>For all her stubbornness, Chad still caught the way Evie’s weight shifted, an uneasy tell she couldn’t contain.</p>
<p>“It isn’t fair, Mal,” Evie said, keeping her head held high. “Carlos and I have done good work for you longer than Chad has.  Not that he hasn’t been helpful-”</p>
<p>“You want in?” Ben interrupted, his voice shifting into a low rasp. “For both of us?”</p>
<p>“We share,” Mal said simply, and Chad could imagine the way her thin brows raised, waiting.  The illusion of patience, but hungry. </p>
<p>If Mal and Ben hadn’t scoffed by now, then they were interested in this.  May have been interested for a while but hadn’t said anything.  Perhaps they thought to protect Evie and Carlos from their appetites, or thought the other two weren’t ready or interested.</p>
<p>One look to Carlos and Chad knew for a fact <em>he</em> was interested, though the young De Ville may never work up the courage to say as much. </p>
<p>Evie nodded her head slowly. “For both of you,” she said, a pretty flush spreading across the bridge of her nose. “We’re just as pretty as they are, Mal, and we can be good and attentive-”</p>
<p>“That was never a question, Evie,” Mal hissed, and then she was marching forward, grabbing onto Evie’s delicate chin before pulling the princess down into a deep kiss. </p>
<p>“<em>Ours</em>,” Ben rumbled, darting forward to swoop Carlos into his arms – the young De Ville letting out a surprised cry before he was deposited on the bed next to Chad.</p>
<p>“Are you okay with this?” Chad asked, watching as Ben began tugging off Carlos’ shoes. “You don’t have to-”</p>
<p>“Trust me,” Jay said, his gaze locked onto where Mal and Evie were making out. “He’s interested.”</p>
<p>“<em>Jay</em>,” Carlos whined, but didn’t fight as Ben began to pull off his clothes.</p>
<p>It made something pulse in Chad’s chest, and he wasn’t sure if it was jealousy or discomfort or maybe even want, because even if this was the first time he’d met Carlos in person, he’d seen pictures- he knew the guy was cute.  Knew Evie was just about perfect, based on the descriptions Jay gave of her. </p>
<p>“Should… should we move?” Chad whispered, aiming the question at Jay. “Give them space?”</p>
<p>Ben <em>growled</em> before Jay got a chance to answer, shoving a naked Carlos on <em>top</em> of Chad, the young De Ville blushing all the while.</p>
<p>“<em>Ours</em>,” Ben hissed, reaching between them so he could pump Chad and Carlos’ lengths together, the younger teen smaller, but so very responsive as Ben controlled their pleasure.</p>
<p>“Oh,” Carlos gasped, one hand pressed against his bare chest as though to cover himself, the other one settling on Chad’s side as Ben got behind him, cradled him in place so the prince could rut them together. “Oh.  <em>Oh</em>.”</p>
<p>“Happy, Pup?” Jay asked with a lazy grin, something that only grew wider as Mal dragged Evie over to the bed and into Jay’s lap so she could begin pulling off the princess’s clothes. “Is it everything you wanted?”</p>
<p>“S-Shut up, Jay,” Carlos gasped, his hips eagerly rutting into Ben’s hands.</p>
<p>“That’s two princes,” Jay teased while he pressed kisses against Evie’s neck, covering the dark bruises Mal had left under her jaw. “-you are between right now.  You are in a prince sandwich.  Does that make you hot?  I can see it makes you hot.”</p>
<p>“Wet-wet-wet,” Ben was chanting, fingers clever and relentless as he worked Carlos and Chad to the edge. “Such a pretty, little thing.  So pretty together.”</p>
<p>“<em>Art</em>,” Mal growled as she dragged Evie’s panties off, the princess letting out a surprised gasp as her legs flexed wider.</p>
<p>It made Chad feel pointedly embarrassed, though he wasn’t sure <em>why</em>.</p>
<p>“M-Mal,” Chad gasped. “Do you- contraception-”</p>
<p>“We’re both on birth control, you <em>shit</em>,” Mal hissed, but for all her harsh words, she still aimed a soft grin at Chad. “Thank you for your consideration, Princey.”</p>
<p>“Always so thoughtful,” Jay drawled, grinning when Evie’s top was pulled off and that was- yes, a very naked princess.</p>
<p>“Stop staring at <em>them</em>,” Ben ordered with a growl, making Chad turn on reflex, moaning when the prince gave him and Carlos a particularly hard grind.  “Us.  <em>Us</em>.  Stare at us.  We’re pretty.  Look.” He let go of Chad’s groin so he could just pump Carlos, who mewled brokenly into the contact. “Pretty.  For you.”</p>
<p>“For <em>us</em>,” Mal hissed, kneeling between Evie’s legs like she belonged there.</p>
<p>“Ben,” Chad whined, and then the prince was shoving Carlos down on his hands and knees, pulling Chad’s leg up so he could really rut them together.</p>
<p>“Like this,” Ben ordered. “Mark him, Carlos.  Leave a mess and then I’ll let you fuck him-”</p>
<p>“I <em>can’t</em>,” Carlos moaned, cheeks flushed and eyes squeezed shut as he tried to weather the storm that was Ben. “I can’t.  I won’t last.”</p>
<p>“But you’ll try,” Ben said, and that was all the warning Chad got before a split second of overwhelming pleasure consumed him, had him falling to pieces, and Carlos lost his way as well, leaving a mess on Chad’s stomach that he gasped through, both of them breathless and sensitive by the time Ben was satisfied. </p>
<p>Ben allowed Carlos to curl up on his side next to Chad, the young De Ville blushing hopelessly as he was situated, fingers seeming tentative before he actually made contact with Chad, though the mess didn’t seem to bother him much.  Maybe it was Chad’s stature.</p>
<p>“Watch,” Ben ordered, staring Carlos in the eye, and then he was pulling out the butt plug Mal had left in Chad earlier, re-lubricating the blond’s entrance while he teased three, then four fingers into Chad’s heat.  “He’ll be so good, for you.  And if you can’t get to the end, I’ll do it for you, or Jay will.”  </p>
<p>“I can’t.” Carlos shook his head, seeming embarrassed by this admittance. “I mean- I don’t think I can um- get hard, again.”</p>
<p>“Would you like to try?” Ben growled, and at Carlos’ frantic nod, he was crawling down the slighter teen’s body, wrapping his mouth around the young De Ville’s length until he <em>mewled</em>. </p>
<p>“Holy shit,” Jay said, his attention torn between Evie’s moans and Carlos’ writhing. “Holy fuck.  What a day.”</p>
<p>“There,” Ben said when he pulled off later, his lips flushed and slick as he grinned victoriously at Carlos’ rekindled interest. “Ready.”</p>
<p>Carlos flushed. “But I won’t- what if I don’t make him feel good?”</p>
<p>“Then <em>I</em> will,” Ben declared, pulling Carlos up, into his lap. “And you will have helped.” With that, his hungry gaze slid over to Chad, who had worked himself up to semi-interested, with all the very good-looking people getting jiggy around him. “Hands and knees, Chad.”</p>
<p>Like every other time Ben’s orders got clipped because he was too enthralled with the call of the beast, Chad bristled.</p>
<p>“Excuse you?” he snapped, even though he’d known what Ben’s goal was in all this, the guy had spent the last four minutes talking about it.</p>
<p>“Fussy,” Jay chuckled over Ben’s rising growl.</p>
<p>“Hands and <em>knees</em>,” Ben spat. “Carlos needs to-”</p>
<p>“I’m sure there was a ‘please’ in there <em>somewhere</em>,” Chad spat, and he got one very satisfying look of befuddlement before Ben bared his teeth at him, sliding Carlos off his lap as he descended upon Chad. </p>
<p>“<em>Please</em>,” he growled, flipping the blond over before he had a say in it, not that he ever did. “Hands and knees, <em>please</em>, I want- I want him to-”</p>
<p>“Fine.” Chad followed the request only because he had no choice, keeping his gaze fixed to the headboard.  He wasn’t sure why this, of all positions, made him feel vulnerable and small, but it always did.</p>
<p>“There,” Ben sighed, and there was some rustling, Carlos being dragged into position while Ben settled the young De Ville’s hands on Chad’s hips. “Just like this.”</p>
<p>“<em>Ben</em>,” Carlos whined, and then there was the slight feeling of pressure while Carlos was presumably eased inside Chad. “Oh fuck, oh fuck, I can’t- he’s so tight, I can’t-”</p>
<p>“Just <em>move</em>,” Chad hissed, and he wasn’t sure if Carlos actually did or not, only that the young teen let out a broken moan before a pulse of liquid was released into Chad.</p>
<p>Wow.  He really hadn’t been joking, Carlos had <em>no</em> stamina.</p>
<p>“S-Sorry,” Carlos murmured, sounding entirely embarrassed. “I’m sorry.  I’m <em>sorry</em>.”</p>
<p>“You did your best,” Ben said, easing Carlos out of Chad. “Look,” he said, thumbing at the slick that spilled from Chad’s entrance.  “That’s yours.”</p>
<p>“W-Wow,” Carlos said, and somehow, it was without irony.</p>
<p>“And he’ll fuck you one day, when you’re ready for it,” Ben continued – proud, likely.  Smiling, definitely. “Now, watch.”</p>
<p>Ben’s hands settled on Chad’s hips as Carlos moved to curl against Jay, and Chad took in a steadying breath before peaking over his shoulder. “Can… could I be on my back for this?”</p>
<p>Ben paused, lips pulled back in a snarl, as though he’d been expecting Chad’s protest, and freezing when he didn’t get one. “Do you prefer that?”</p>
<p>Chad curled his fingers into the sheets, averting his gaze to the side.  Then he nodded, once.</p>
<p>A low rumble released from Ben’s chest. “Okay,” he said, and then he was splaying Chad out the way he normally would, hooking his legs around his waist and angling himself against Chad’s entrance. “Better?”</p>
<p>Chad nodded. </p>
<p>“Good,” Ben said, and then he got to the business of taking Chad apart under Carlos and Jay’s watchful gaze. </p>
<p>In the end, Ben ravished Chad and Carlos like it was his job while Mal shattered Jay and Evie into a million pieces, until the six of them cuddled naked on the bed, messy but sated and gasping for air.</p>
<p>“Guess we’re going to have to clean you guys in waves,” Mal said.  “I’ll bathe Evie and Chad first.  Ben, you massage Carlos and Jay into horrible messes in the meantime.”</p>
<p>Chad flushed, because of course Mal would put him with the princess, she knew how awkward he got around naked ladies, because for whatever reason, his brain was fundamentally broken. </p>
<p>“I’ll start the bath,” Mal said, leaning over the others to press a kiss against Ben’s lips, something he gladly sighed into. “And then you’ll carry them?”</p>
<p>“Of course,” Ben rumbled, and that, Chad supposed, was that.</p>
<p>So Chad guessed he had two more partners.  Or, Ben did.  Ben and Mal did.</p>
<p>It was confusing.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>“You don’t ever leave here?” Evie asked when Mal cuddled them together, doing her absolute best to dote on them in equal turns, pressing gentle kisses against their lips before carefully dragging soft sponges across their weary bodies.</p>
<p>Chad swallowed, because Evie was very much angled against his chest and she was a <em>princess</em> and once upon a time Chad had been hoping to date one of those, and then he’d gotten claimed by Ben. </p>
<p>“Not recently,” he said, looking at the pretty curve of her neck that had been marred with bruises.  “Ben was too worked up for it, but now with you guys…” Maybe Chad would get out again, but did he even <em>want</em> to go there?  He’d already been humiliated in front of the entire school. </p>
<p>Understandably humiliated, consensually humiliated, but the fact still remained.</p>
<p>It was a small miracle that Chad’s grandfather had yet to find out about Ben’s claim on Chad, but Fairy Godmother had very strict media blackout policies to go along with the sex wavers, so he was safe, at least for now.</p>
<p>“You think you’ll go to class again?” Evie hummed, holding his hand underneath the water.  Her fingers were calloused, but painted a deep shade of red that contrasted nicely with her pale skin. “It’d be nice to share chemistry with you.”</p>
<p>“I don’t think Ben would allow it,” Chad said, thinking back to Ben’s initial days of snarling possessiveness. “And it probably doesn’t matter.  I can learn everything on my own.  It’s probably faster.”</p>
<p>Evie tilted her head back so she could stare at Chad. “But you wouldn’t get to socialize.”</p>
<p>For Chad, that was probably a lost cause by this point. “It’s fine.”</p>
<p>Eventually, Ben would get bored of him, and Chad would fade back into the monotony of school and sure, people would whisper about him at first, but eventually it would all die down.  Maybe then Chad could make some friends, assuming they didn’t think he was used goods.</p>
<p>“What about extracurriculars?” Evie asked. “Jay and Carlos do Tourney, and Mal has art club.  I started up my fashion business, and Doug invited me into the Hanover Cultural club so we could review our mystical heritage.  What do you do?”</p>
<p>“Paperwork,” Chad hummed while Mal worked her fingers through his hair. “I work on draft legislature proposals or review Ben’s council notes and try to implement positive changes while I can.”</p>
<p>“Those aren’t hobbies,” Mal noted.</p>
<p>Chad shrugged. “I was going to do Tourney, but Ben got all-” Chad shook his head. “It doesn’t matter, I only wanted to do it because I thought it would look good.  It’s a popular sport, popular princes compete in it.”</p>
<p>Mal considered this for a moment, sharing a look with Evie, before she started kissing Chad’s neck. “We need to get you out of this room,” she decided. “I get why Ben wants to keep you locked away and safe, but…”</p>
<p>“But flowers die without sunlight,” Evie offered sagely, giving his hand another squeeze. “You need to blossom, Chad.  Everyone else deserves to see how wonderful you are.”</p>
<p>“You’re greatly overselling me,” Chad said, but they both ignored him, choosing instead to trade off giving him soft kisses. </p>
<p>Eventually, because Chad was only human, he got um- interested again, and <em>both</em> of them reached a hand between his legs to ease him to completion, Chad moaning all the while.</p>
<p>“So pretty,” Evie whispered against Chad’s jaw, and he didn’t know if he was a novelty or if she genuinely meant that.  He tried not to look into it. </p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>Chad couldn’t help but be self-conscious his first day back in class.</p>
<p>Ben had ravished him that morning – nothing too intensive, just enough to get Chad’s smell in his nose before he bundled the blond prince in a set of his own clothes and walked him to class.  It was a testament to how settled Ben had become over the past few months that he didn’t even deign to glare at anyone in the hall as they passed, though maybe that was because he didn’t need to, because Ben also had Jay and Carlos and Evie (and sometimes Mal) to sate the beast’s hunger. </p>
<p>Chad was alone for first period, reverting back to the schedule he had before and that was fine, because Ben had only kissed him before they parted ways, but even that relatively harmless action had the other students staring at Chad like he was some kind of foreign being.  He ended up in the chair he had selected the first day of class.  It had been empty, likely due to what had happened there, but Chad ignored that, pulling out his notebook and his worksheets and trying to pretend everything was okay.</p>
<p>Which would be entirely more successful if the other students were willing to pretend along with him, but of course they weren’t, because Chad had been trapped in Ben’s bedroom for almost two months.</p>
<p>“Whoa,” Aziz said, offering Chad a small wave. “I didn’t think we were gonna see you again.”</p>
<p>“Are you sore?” another girl asked, the words seeming to burst out of her unbidden because she immediately flushed.  Then, realizing she had already embarrassed herself anyway, she continued, “I mean, with all the…” </p>
<p>“As you can imagine,” Chad began carefully, <em>diplomatically</em>. “That’s none of your business.”</p>
<p>“I bet he’s super sore,” another guy chuckled. “From taking it up the ass all the time.”</p>
<p>“<em>Taylor</em>,” Aziz chided.</p>
<p>The other teen was undeterred. “Say, does that actually feel good?  It says online that it might-”</p>
<p>“It depends on the person,” the first girl offered shyly, flushing even darker at Taylor’s appreciative hum.</p>
<p>“So why’d he let you out?” the girl on Chad’s other side asked, a slim teen of Imperial City decent. “Is he done with you?”</p>
<p>“Ben’s been hanging out with those VKs a lot,” first girl said. “Is he um… <em>you know</em>?”</p>
<p>“Still not your business,” Chad said, his tone clipped.</p>
<p>“<em>Wow</em>,” Taylor laughed. “That sounds like something someone who got dumped would say.”</p>
<p>“Don’t be stupid, Taylor,” Aziz said. “Ben literally walked him here.”</p>
<p>“Okay,” Taylor amended. “Someone on his <em>way</em> to being dumped.”</p>
<p>“Settle down, class,” the teacher said, and never was Chad more glad to memorize boring historical facts (as opposed to the interesting ones he researched in his private studies) in all of his life.</p>
<p>He did that, and definitely didn’t think of anything the kids had said, because it was stupid speculation and mindless gossip.  Obviously it was unfounded, Chad would <em>know</em>.</p>
<p>And it wasn’t like he’d be upset if he was dumped anyway.  Not that he would be, because he and Ben weren’t even dating, so-</p>
<p>It was fine. </p>
<p>It was all fine.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>It became a running trend.</p>
<p>The majority of Chad’s day was spent fending off questions about his personal relationship with Ben, about his sexual preferences, about the VKs.  None of them were interested in anything else, like how Chad was doing, or what his goals were, or maybe even interested in getting to know him.  Once more he had been reduced to simply what he <em>was</em>, and more than once he had heard whispers of <em>‘the king’s whore</em>’ floating about the halls when he walked by. </p>
<p>By lunch, Chad was tempted to retreat to Ben’s suite and call it a day, but he knew he couldn’t come off as that weak.  One of the few things he had left was his pride, so he made it to the place he’d never gotten to the first day and walked into the Dining Hall, ending up settled between Ben and Jay, the prince keeping his arm firmly wrapped around Chad’s waist. </p>
<p>Ben’s attention though, was on Evie.  Or on Carlos.  On Jay’s quick wit and Mal’s vicious smirk.  His attention was on these people that were so bright and shining while Chad was just <em>fussy</em>, an expectation, but predictable. </p>
<p><em>Replaceable</em>.</p>
<p>It was only a matter of time, Chad knew, he just had to wait.</p>
<p>He hoped it happened sooner rather than later.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>“Is everything okay?” Evie asked when the three of them were studying, Carlos poking his head up from his selection of textbooks to pay attention to the conversation, even though it distracted from his own work.</p>
<p>“I’m good,” Chad said, keeping his focus on his own worksheets. </p>
<p>One of the few positives in this mess was getting to bond with Evie and Carlos, who were actually pretty cool.  Evie was grace and beauty personified, but she was also sharp as a tack, and seemed determined to acquire new knowledge every day.  She was determined to be the best leader for Hanover that she could be, and now that she had Queen Snow’s blessing (and her sisterhood), Evie seemed so very sure of herself, stable and comfortable in her own skin. </p>
<p>Chad liked to ask her opinion on his legislature proposals – well, mostly he liked working with her because she offered a fresh perspective that inspired new ideas, and sometimes Ben and Mal would have to drag them away from their private study so they could like, eat and sleep and cuddle.  On more than one occasion Mal had praised them for a job well done, and sometimes that involved blowjobs and being eaten out and sometimes that involved massages and sometimes that involved chocolates and pedicures and Chad didn’t really need validation for his work because the change he instilled was validation enough, but it was still sort of nice to get it.</p>
<p>Despite how inexperienced Carlos was in the bedroom, outside of it he was clever, sarcastic, and <em>smart</em>.  Carlos was staggeringly brilliant, to the point where he had tested up two grades and was juggling an entire roster of honors classes just to keep himself interested.  He loved robotics and constructing things – he knew how to build an entire car from the ground up.  He was always working at his computer or soldering something together or showing Chad the latest car models and critiquing their designs. </p>
<p>Carlos loved making fun of Jay (something the other teen reciprocated in full force), but his relationship with Evie was sugary sweet.  Mal, he respected more than anyone else, though that seemed to be a common theme with the Isle kids.  The way Carlos looked at Ben made Chad think he actually understood the king-to-be, and it… it didn’t hurt, because for all that he complained, Chad did want good things for Ben, even if he didn’t know how to express that much.</p>
<p>Still, Chad and Carlos spent a lot of time brainstorming potential presents for the others (Chad acting disinterested all the while), or laughing at Jay’s expense, or trying to help Evie, and it was so nice to have that kind of intelligent support without having to ask for it that Chad almost didn’t know what to do. </p>
<p>Well, he <em>didn’t</em> know what to do, so he was just a sarcastic asshole.  It was his usual default.</p>
<p>Carlos considered him with narrowed eyes. “Are you just saying that because you know if you said ‘fine’ we’d keep digging?”</p>
<p>Chad sighed, even though that was entirely the case. “I’m good, Carlos.”</p>
<p>“You have to tell us if that changes,” Evie ordered, tone brooking no room for arguments.</p>
<p>Chad didn’t have the heart to tell her that it already had.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>He joined the Tourney team.</p>
<p>He didn’t really <em>want</em> to (he didn’t think he had the energy for it, nowadays), but Mal seemed determined for him to get his one thing so Chad relented with as much grace as he could muster.  Surprisingly, the coach was fine with letting him join up late, though that likely had to do more with Ben’s mild growling than any sense of fairness. </p>
<p>It wasn’t bad.  Chad had played Tourney back in Sardinia, so at least it was familiar, and he wasn’t terrible at it.  He enjoyed playing it more at Auradon Prep because here there were dozens of princes instead of just him, so no one tried to tackle him more often than necessary because they were jealous.  He still got stuck with the awkward, wavering conversations though, because Chad had been first and foremost Ben’s bitch before he’d gotten to socialize with the team, so none of them really knew how to talk to him.</p>
<p>Aziz tried though, because Aziz was an optimist, Chad guessed.  Chad spent a lot of time chatting with him.</p>
<p>Mostly, it was to distract himself from the physical affection Ben seemed to constantly dote on Jay and Carlos.</p>
<p>There was always something.  He’d bump helmets with Jay after the Agraben teen scored another amazing win, or he’d ruffle Carlos’ hair when they were in the shade getting water.  He’d stop to bury his face in Jay’s neck to smell him when they were changing, or he’d hook his finger onto the front of Carlos’ jersey and pull him into a sweet kiss that had the other guys laughing.</p>
<p>He didn’t do anything with Chad.  He never did in public anymore.</p>
<p>But Chad was a pro, a master of hiding his own feelings for the sake of maintaining a poised persona, so he never acted like this bothered him.  He was content to pass small talk with Aziz and ignore Taylor’s pointed barbs and act like everything was going to plan, even if it wasn’t.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>They started biting him less.</p>
<p>It wasn’t something he tried to notice on purpose, but Chad had always been a creature of details, which meant a thorough review of the given conditions was ingrained in his bones, and in this instance, he was getting bitten less.</p>
<p>Granted, he always made a point to object to their teeth breaking his skin, partially because it hurt and partially because if he didn’t, his neck would be a mess of black and blue bruises that would have to be touched up every day, and it was difficult to go to class with a sense of casual nonchalance when everyone was staring at the mottled skin.</p>
<p><em>But</em>.</p>
<p>The bite marks, for Mal and Ben, were equivalent to claims.  It made sense with the beast that was primal in nature, or with Mal’s dark fairy blood, which tended to be possessive and defensive of what was hers.  Chad might object to the bites, but the one comfort he could take from them was that it marked him as <em>theirs</em>. </p>
<p>It wasn’t a thing he realized he needed until it started happening less, and then he found himself fingering the unblemished skin around his neck, wondering what he’d done wrong.</p>
<p>Well, he didn’t really have to wonder.  He’d been a ‘fussy’ asshole this entire time.  With Mal, Evie, and Carlos – all willing and interested participants, all unique and lovely in their own way, did they really need Chad? </p>
<p>The answer, obviously, was no.  </p>
<p>Chad didn’t know it could get worse until Ben intercepted him one day when Chad was getting ready for school, cutting the blond off before he could get into the prince’s walk-in closet.</p>
<p>“I was thinking,” Ben said, using that soft smile that meant he was more Ben than beast at the moment. “Maybe you could wear your own clothes today?  It is um… kind of silly for me to make you wear mine all the time.”</p>
<p>While Chad sometimes wore Jay’s clothes around the suite, it was always Ben’s clothing that he wore to class, Ben’s coat that he tucked close to his shoulders when he was feeling a little insecure, because despite himself, he found the other teen’s misplaced attraction to him comforting.  Chad hadn’t grumbled so much about wearing Ben’s clothes recently (aside from complaining about his pants, because Ben was a tall string bean and Chad had <em>muscle mass</em>, damnit), which made this conversation all the more off-putting.</p>
<p>Still, it wasn’t like Chad could reasonably ask to wear Ben’s clothes anyway.  It wasn’t becoming of someone of his stature, and besides, if Ben’s interest was fading…</p>
<p>That was a good thing, right?</p>
<p>So Chad mustered his most charming smile, despite not feeling any inkling of happiness.</p>
<p>“Okay, sure,” he said, turning to the dresser that had been more or less untouched since Ben had brought him to his suite.  Chad didn’t have much in there, because he hadn’t needed it, but there should still be something. </p>
<p>“Cool,” Ben chirped, swooping forward to claim Chad’s lips in a kiss. “I’m gonna head off to pick up Evie for an early morning phone call with Queen Snow.  I’ll see you in class!”</p>
<p>Used to be a time where Ben wouldn’t let Chad walk anywhere in the school unattended, but that was stupid.  It was <em>stupid</em>.  Chad was perfectly capable of escorting himself. </p>
<p>This didn’t mean anything.</p>
<p>“See you, Ben,” Chad said, but the door was already closing.</p>
<p>It was an unfortunately familiar action.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>“What’s up, <em>has-been</em>?”</p>
<p>“Fuck off, Audrey,” Chad grumbled, switching out textbooks in his locker and pretending his weariness came from Tourney drills and not what was probably depression.</p>
<p>“<em>Oooooh</em>, someone sounds bitter,” the princess sang, swaying her way over towards Chad’s locker because she had nothing better to do.  “Trouble in paradise?”</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t call it paradise,” Chad lied, maybe, he wasn’t sure. </p>
<p>He tried not to think about it too much because if he did, he’d have to admit to being entirely broken.</p>
<p>“This is lovely,” Audrey cackled, slumping next to his locker with a victorious sigh. “Ben’s been hot for you forever, but I knew you were just a passing phase.  I <em>knew</em> it.  You were just a pretty face he got his prepubescent rocks off too, and once he got you he realized all the gossip magazines were right about how boring you are.”</p>
<p>“Fuck <em>off</em>, Audrey,” Chad repeated, but he was tired.  He didn’t want to go to Tourney practice, he wanted to go to Ben’s suite and sleep.  He wanted to pretend it was three months ago back when everything was fine, before Chad had seen a lone thief wandering Ben’s room and thought he’d collect him like a stray cat.</p>
<p>“He used you for what you were good for,” Audrey giggled. “Just like he’ll use those Isle kids.  And then when the beast is still hungry, he’ll move on.”</p>
<p>“To you?” Chad asked, raising an unimpressed eyebrow at her. </p>
<p>Her vicious preen was answer enough. “Ben must have realized he needed to get all his wildness out of his system before he got to me,” she explained. “He didn’t want to date me until he had matured past his sex-crazed ways into a real gentleman.  Ben’s thoughtful like that.”</p>
<p>“You’re delusional,” Chad scoffed. “If you can’t see the way he looks at Mal and the others then you’re crazy, because they’re pretty much his entire world.”</p>
<p>“For now,” Audrey hissed, and it was nice, to finally hit a sore spot. “But I know one thing for sure, he doesn’t look at <em>you</em> that way anymore.”</p>
<p>With that, she left him with a toss of her curls, stomping away as though Chad would have the energy to chase her.</p>
<p>That was enough to seal the deal of Chad’s Tourney fate, and he abandoned all thoughts of practice, trudging back to Ben’s room and dumping his bookbag near the desk.  He considered Ben’s bed – the lovely little nest they had started making between the six of them – <em>six</em>, what a ridiculous number – and forced himself to push onwards, towards the guest bedroom. </p>
<p>He collapsed in there, and waited for sleep to take him. </p>
<p>Eventually, it did.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>“Hey.” A firm hand nudged Chad awake later, and he blinked up to find Jay’s worried expression, the tall teen staring down at him with furrowed brows. “You missed practice.”</p>
<p>Carlos poked out from behind Jay, looking over his shoulder. “Are you feeling okay?”</p>
<p>“Oh shit,” Jay said, pressing a hand to Chad’s forehead. “Are you sick?”</p>
<p>“I’m fine,” Chad lied, scooting away from him.  “I’m just tired.”</p>
<p>“It’s dinner time,” Carlos said quietly. “You should come eat with us.”</p>
<p>And spend another meal squeezed next to Ben, physically close but miles from his mind?</p>
<p>“I’m not hungry,” Chad lied, Audrey’s words bouncing around in his mind.</p>
<p>“<em>I know one thing for sure,</em>” she sneered, her voice seeming to get louder and louder.<em>  “</em>H<em>e doesn’t look at <strong>you</strong> that way anymore</em>.”</p>
<p>He wondered if any of them did. </p>
<p>“O…kay,” Jay said, seeming confused. “I mean, we could bring something back for you-”</p>
<p>“I’m <em>fine</em>,” Chad snapped, curling away from them, and he waited, waited for them to leave, because everyone did.</p>
<p>It took about thirty seconds, but Chad didn’t cry.</p>
<p>He <em>didn’t</em>.</p>
<p>But he did sleep. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you so much for the feedback, guys!!  Things are starting to return to normal where I live, and your support was a lovely highlight to as we got through things :)  </p>
<p>Story notes:</p>
<p>I figured since Cruella had a car on the Isle, Carlos probably knew how to take care of it, hence his interest in cars. </p>
<p>Hanover is my name for Snow White’s kingdom, which is canonically Charmington and also a dumb name. </p>
<p>Until next time :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The Promise</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>WARNING – Verbal &amp; Mild Physical Abuse/Slutshaming – in scene 5, Chad undergoes mild abuse that he is accustomed to receiving so it’s not traumatic, but there is a little blood and definite slutshaming.  See endnotes for details.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It became a recurring theme.</p>
<p>Chad had just enough energy to make it through the school day, and then he was done.  He just about always skipped eighth period (Tourney, which would drag into afterschool practice) to head back to the guest room.  Some days he could force himself into the shower, do a quick wash before pulling on his pjs – not Jay’s or Ben’s or the ones Evie had made him, because those were all out in the big room and that wasn’t his place anymore.</p>
<p>He’d try to do homework, but mostly, he slept.</p>
<p>Sometimes, he’d wake up with Ben curled around him, the prince’s nose pressed into Chad’s curls – but that was just Ben.  Underneath the beast, Ben was kind and thoughtful and sweet, and even if Chad wasn’t his mate, he would still be nice to Chad, as was proven by his actions. </p>
<p>“Chad…” he’d rumble the few times he caught the blond wake up. “Chad, you have to tell me what’s wrong.”</p>
<p><em>‘I probably have depression</em>,’ Chad could not say.  ‘<em>It runs in my family</em>’.</p>
<p>The words hovered on the tip of his tongue, but it was too hard to let them go.  He shouldn’t bother Ben with his problems.  He shouldn’t bother any of them.  Even when they started taking turns keeping him company, he knew that was more out of obligation to an ally than anything else.  Quite by happenstance, Chad had given them almost everything they needed to do well here.  He was good for that. </p>
<p><em>Had</em> been good for that.</p>
<p>Evie would sit with her back against his headboard, embroidering something by hand.  Carlos would type on his laptop, explain some of the projects he was working on as a sort of buzzing background noise.  Jay would recount Tourney practice to him, would talk about how his classes went, how lunch went, when Chad stopped showing up to that (it was too hard, there were too many people).  A lot of times he just went to the garden closest to his fifth period class and waited, wishing the flowers would somehow boost his strength.</p>
<p>Ben and Mal were always the same.  They always curled around Chad, pretending to be a buffer from the rest of the world.  They would hold him, but they never bit him or licked him.  They would smell, but they didn’t kiss, letting out low rumbles as they held Chad close. </p>
<p>It hurt, it hurt, it hurt, <em>it hurt, it hurt</em> – up until the day Ben roused him from his sleep, his expression carefully neutral as he watched Chad’s face.</p>
<p>“I think,” he began when Chad was as awake as he was going to be. “That maybe you should move back into your dorm room.”</p>
<p>“…okay,” Chad rasped, because it was an ultimatum he’d been waiting for, one that had been a long time coming. “I’ll pack my bag.”</p>
<p>It was a joke.  Most of his stuff had never made it from his original room to Ben’s suite. At least, not until recently, when they had him wear his own clothes.</p>
<p>Ben offered him a tight smile. “I’ll help.”</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>Ben was kind enough to walk Chad to his old room.  Mal didn’t come with them, she hadn’t even been in the suite when Ben had walked Chad out, she and Jay both mysteriously absent while Evie and Carlos huddled together on the couch, both doing their best to appear apathetic.  They were worried though, but they’d been worried.  After this, maybe they would be relieved.</p>
<p>Ben paused when he finally got to Chad’s old door, offering the bag he had carried over to the blond prince. “I… I hope this is better.”</p>
<p>“I’m sure it will be,” Chad said, because he’d never meant to wreck the internal balance of Ben’s love conglomerate or whatever, he just <em>had</em>, because that was what Chad did.</p>
<p>This was for the best, but that didn’t make it hurt less.</p>
<p>Ben tensed, blissfully stupid to the end because he hadn’t expected Chad to notice that much before he gave an awkward nod, turning deftly on his heel and walking away with his head held high – like a king.</p>
<p>One day, Chad was going to be a king too.</p>
<p>He hoped he could stand half as regally.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>If there was one person who had not been expecting Chad’s breakup, it was Doug, his roommate, who had given him a startled look from his position hunched over his desk at Chad’s entrance.  His ears tinged red when he realized Chad was actually staying, because it seemed that Chad’s bed had become a sort of storage area for books in his absence. </p>
<p>Chad dismissed the dwarf-kin’s stuttered apologies, assuring him it was fine, he liked books too, and that he was perfectly okay sleeping on the couch.  In fact, Chad preferred it, because he had grown used to the beds in Ben’s suite, and those weren’t his to claim anymore. </p>
<p>This didn’t seem to ease Doug’s mind, but that was about all the energy Chad had to offer him.</p>
<p>He spent his nights on the couch.</p>
<p>One of the first things he did after the breakup was go to Fairy Godmother and get his schedule changed.  Any class he’d shared with them, any elective, he changed.  He quit the Tourney team, stating that he’d fulfill his PE requirements back home in Sardinia.  He filled his vacant eighth period with a technical writing class that would help him build legislature one day and hoped his body would allow him to stay awake through it. </p>
<p>He avoided everyone he could, kept his head down.  He didn’t feel like the shining prince of Sardinia anymore.  He wondered if this was how his father felt all the time.  It made it more understandable – how the man could let Chad’s grandfather call the shots when thinking seemed so very hard.  Chad just didn’t have the drive anymore.  Sometimes he wondered if he ever did.</p>
<p>Occasionally, Audrey would come around to taunt him, reveling in her victory, but Chad ignored her.  He only had so much energy to spare, and he wasn’t going to waste it on pointless arguments with spoiled princesses.  When she realized she had no audience to engage, she left Chad in a huff, her nose pointed deftly into the air.</p>
<p>Chad wondered what it was like, to be so sure of oneself.</p>
<p>“Um…” Doug said one day when Chad was sprawled across the couch. “Ben was… Ben wanted me to ask you if you’d like to um… look over any of his edicts. You know… make notes?”</p>
<p>Chad managed a laugh.  It was a small, bitter thing, though honestly amused.</p>
<p>“Tell him no,” Chad whispered, pointedly aware of the numbers he had blocked on his phone that resorted Ben to using intermediaries.</p>
<p>Doug tensed. “I um… I don’t know what note you guys ended on, but that stuff was for the good of Auradon.  For all of us.  Ben says-”</p>
<p>“I said <em>no</em>,” Chad murmured, turning to bury his face in the couch cushions.</p>
<p>Doug didn’t try to talk to him again.</p>
<p>“Alright, you gotta tell me something,” was how Aziz decided to greet him, cornering Chad during one of his determined excursions to avoid the dining hall during lunch.  Chad knew he was getting thinner, knew he needed to do more than sneak food into his bag during breakfast and survive off that for the rest of the day, he just couldn’t think of what else he could do that wouldn’t take him into that very full room full of people who thought he was a dumb whore anyway.</p>
<p>“What?” Chad grumbled, managing not to sway on his bench because the faster they got through this, the fast Aziz would go.</p>
<p>“Who dumped who?” Aziz asked. “Because you seem miserable and Ben seems miserable-”</p>
<p>“Ben isn’t miserable,” Chad said, because he’d entertained thoughts of what heartbroken Ben might look like, and the guy he saw walking the halls seemed just fine.  That guy always had company, always maintained some kind of contact with the VKs, whether he had an arm wrapped around Evie or Jay’s waist or he was holding Carlos’ hand or he was letting Mal wrap around his back like some kind of tiny, determined blanket.</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Aziz scoffed, having the audacity to roll his eyes. “He is.  You would know this if you weren’t busy moping.”</p>
<p>“I’m not moping,” Chad said, hoping it sounded at least partially confident. “I’m keeping a low profile so this whore stuff will blow over.”</p>
<p>“Are people still calling you that?” Aziz asked, genuinely startled by this turn of events.</p>
<p>Seriously, how was this guy a prince?</p>
<p>“They never stopped, Aziz,” Chad drawled.  He was already tired of this conversation.  He wanted to go find a dark place to nap, but apparently he’d been too obvious with his moping so he’d have to put up a better front so he could look like a productive member of society.</p>
<p>“<em>Shit</em>,” the Agraben hissed. “I’m sorry, man.  That’s not cool.”</p>
<p>That was a horrific understatement, but Chad appreciated the sentiment.</p>
<p>“It is what it is,” Chad said, shrugging. “Any other questions?”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Aziz continued, relentless. “Did you break up with them because of the whore stuff?”</p>
<p>“I’m leaving now,” Chad announced, and then he did just that.</p>
<p>Conversations were stupid.</p>
<p>Chad wondered why he bothered to have them sometimes.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>After that point, Chad did his best to ‘buck up’, so to speak.</p>
<p>He didn’t rejoin the Tourney team because he wasn’t stupid, but he did make a marginal effort to be more involved with his life.  He still didn’t eat as much as he should have, but he tried to work out and tried to be charming because the only thing he really had going for him was his looks.  He stuck to flirting with easy targets like Jane, who were at least kind enough to blush when he tried to talk them up, so he guessed maybe he wasn’t entirely broken after all. </p>
<p>Chad finally took pity on Doug and started looking at the paperwork-stuffed folders Ben sent to him, doing what was best for Auradon and tackling the nonsense that was Ben’s dumb ideas and making them work.  Those work periods would sometimes blindside him, because he’d be making great headway with a few pages of edits and then flip to a document that had some of Mal’s pictures scribbled in the margins, or Evie’s handwriting.  Those just about always stopped him in his tracks, made him shut down, until Doug finally put the pieces together and realized what was making Chad curl up in a pathetic ball on the couch and stare at nothing.</p>
<p>After that, his roommate was always careful to go through the paperwork before he gave it to Chad, covering the offending scribbles with post-it notes, which made it at least good enough for Chad to get through his work. </p>
<p>He felt better, even if he didn’t feel great.  Chad decided that counted for something.</p>
<p>At least until he got an invitation from Queen Belle to attend a dinner at Auradon Castle with his dad and grandfather. </p>
<p>Which was entirely <em>not</em> ominous.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>While Chad knew there was no chance of his father attending this ordeal, he had been hoping that his grandfather would be too occupied running Sardinia to bother with dumb, last-minute dinners.  It was a fruitless hope, because the dumb dinner was with the queen and it wasn’t like the Duke was going to pass on that, so Chad was treated to a tense car ride with his grandfather while he did his very best not to piss the man off.  Which was a failing effort before he even started, since Chad could not give even a theoretical reason as to why they had been invited in the first place, if this was good or bad.</p>
<p>“Hello, gentlemen.” Queen Belle greeted them in the sitting room – just her, no Ben or King Adam to be found. “I’m so glad you were able to make it to dinner.  Chad, darling, how is your father doing?”</p>
<p>“Well, your majesty,” Chad allowed with a slight nod of his head. “He sends his apologies for being unable to make it this evening.”</p>
<p>He did no such thing, but it sounded nice in theory.</p>
<p>The queen beamed. “No apologies are necessary,” she assured them. “I know this was quite a last-minute invitation, but Ben finally told me about selecting you as his mate-”</p>
<p>“Excuse me?” the Duke said, all while Chad’s stomach turned to stone, dropping to his feet because that was a lie, it was a <em>lie</em>, why would Ben have told her that?</p>
<p>The queen seemed startled by the interruption, but even more so by the Duke’s sudden severity. “Ben has selected Chadwick as his mate,” she explained. “Well, he selected a few of his classmates to be his mate, but Chad was the first and, I’m told, one of the most prominent-”</p>
<p>“We’re leaving,” the Duke said, and he didn’t even wait to be dismissed before he breezed out of the room, Chad knowing better than to make him wait by offering obligatory niceties that came with properly disengaging from these kind of situations.  He followed hot on his grandfather’s heels, ignoring what few protests he heard spilling behind him on a distinct delay as they flew through the corridors of Auradon Castle.</p>
<p>“Do you have any idea how this makes us look?” the Duke asked, the question entirely rhetorical as he worked his way through his combination of rage and disappointment.  </p>
<p>“You don’t understand,” Chad said, struggling to keep up with him. “If you had just kept your cool-”</p>
<p>The Duke rarely welcomed any sort of criticism, least of all that brought forth from Chad, so it really was no wonder that the man stopped then and there to backhand Chad across the face, startling one of the footmen that had been lingering nearby.</p>
<p>“I will not be criticized by some fool that has been whoring himself out to another prince for the past few months!” the Duke snarled, his cheeks flooding with the familiar flush of anger.  “That boy is no better than a <em>dog</em>.”</p>
<p>“Perhaps you shouldn’t speak of such things in his own castle-”</p>
<p>Chad should really learn to keep his mouth shut, though the fingers roughly gripping at his curls were a familiar thing, as was the way the Duke yanked him forward, until Chad was forced to hunch or have his hair ripped out. </p>
<p>“You have sullied the name of Sardinia,” the Duke growled, his fingers tightening in Chad’s hair. “Which was likely inevitable, but you do so in a way that even manages to surpass your mother, who merely had the crime of being a commoner.  No, <em>you</em> had to prove you have the blood of a whore running in your veins, so strong that Prince Benjamin waited for you, <em>lusted</em> for you, when he had nothing but an image of you to sate his vile, carnal desires.”</p>
<p>“She wasn’t- she wasn’t a whore,” Chad whispered on reflex even though he’d never met his mother, and he wasn’t surprised when the Duke backhanded him yet again.</p>
<p>“You <em>both</em> are,” the Duke rumbled, keeping Chad hunched as he continued his speedy retreat back to their limousine. “And your children will be whores too.  I should let that fool marry you, keep you here in Auradon so someone truly worthy could rule Sardinia, but I would never punish the rest of the united kingdoms with such a horrible fate.  No, you will be coming home-”</p>
<p>“But the contract-”</p>
<p>“You are a fool and incompetent!” the Duke snarled, shaking Chad roughly by his hair until his scalp throbbed in protest.  “If I have to have that legally proven, then so be it, but obviously you were not sound of mind when you signed those documents and you obviously are not sound of mind to <em>lead</em>.” He started dragging Chad again. “I’ll have you tossed into a facility and rid my hands of the matter entirely.  You have been a blight upon our kingdom long enough.”</p>
<p>“That’s not fair,” Chad said, even though life wasn’t fair, the transfer students had proven that well enough. “He doesn’t even want me anymore.  If you’d just wait, this would all blow over-”</p>
<p>“The damage has already been done,” the Duke said, striking Chad across the face again.  Then again, until blood was running from his nose and his lips were slick with it. “All you had to do was keep your damn legs shut and you couldn’t even manage <em>that</em>.”</p>
<p>His dalliances with Ben might have, eventually, been excusable, but there was no forgiving the others, even if it had made things easier at the time. </p>
<p>Chad didn’t cry, because he had long abandoned such things as useless, but he did allow himself to surrender to a familiar kind of apathy. </p>
<p>It was over.  He’d lost and he couldn’t even really argue his case, because most of what the Duke had said was true.</p>
<p>“Maybe not a facility,” the Duke muttered. “Perhaps I should leave you in a brothel.  Clearly, it is where you are most comfortable.”</p>
<p>“<em>Don’t-</em>” Chad gasped, reaching out reflexively.</p>
<p>“You are in no position to make requests!” the Duke snarled, yanking down so hard Chad fell to his knees. “You will take what mercy I give you and be grateful for it, you stupid fool-”</p>
<p>“Duke Francis.” The composed tone was such a contrast to the Duke’s rage that Chad almost believed he’d imagined it, except the Duke had frozen, hand pulled back as though he had been about to strike Chad once more.</p>
<p>When Chad looked up, it was to see Queen Belle with her hands folded primly in front of her, the footman from before lingering nearby, chest heaving as though he’d ran to fetch her.</p>
<p>“Perhaps you should restrain yourself,” she continued, her expression carved from ice.</p>
<p>“My apologies, your majesty,” the Duke said, offering her a slight bow. “I fear my grandson required immediate punishment for his follies – such things that could not wait until we were in respectable privacy.”</p>
<p>“I must disagree with you, Duke Francis,” the queen – the <em>queen</em>, who was sweet and kind to everyone – interrupted. “Please step away from Chadwick.”</p>
<p>There was movement in the corner of Chad’s eye, and a group of guards came down the hallway, all of them holding stun guns at the ready.</p>
<p>The Duke did not let go. “This is a family matter, your majesty.  You need not get involved.”     </p>
<p>“Assault is still assault, no matter who is the instigator,” the queen said serenely, motioning to the guards. “And if you do not let Chad go, we will be forced-”</p>
<p>“You would attack <em>me?</em>”</p>
<p>“-to use more direct means to ensure your compliance.”</p>
<p>The guards aimed their weapons, all of them locked on the Duke, who didn’t seem to know what was happening.  <em>Chad</em> didn’t know what was happening.</p>
<p>So he did his best to defuse the situation. “It’s okay, your majesty,” he said, attempting to offer his best smile, even if it pulled at the cuts on his lip. “It looks worse than it is.”</p>
<p>For whatever reason, this seemed to make the queen’s expression soften into a smile. “How it looks is irrelevant, sweetheart,” she said quietly. “What matters is that it happened at all.”</p>
<p>Before Chad a chance to argue, a low buzzing noise filled the air, and suddenly the hand in his curls went slack. </p>
<p>It took Chad a moment to realize the Duke had crumpled to the ground in an unconscious heap, the sight so utterly foreign to him that his brain refused to acknowledge it, even as the guards descended upon him and carried his grandfather’s limp body away.</p>
<p>“Um.” Chad tensed, waiting to see if he’d get zapped too, but none of the guards made any moves towards him.  The only one who approached him at all was Queen Belle, whose hand hovered in front of her for a few moments before Chad realized she wanted him to take it. </p>
<p>It felt like a trap, but Chad accepted out of good manners, and was stunned when she gently tugged him to his feet.</p>
<p>“Let’s get you to the doctor, dear,” she said, looping her arm carefully through his as she began to tug him away. “And maybe you can tell me how many times this has happened before.”</p>
<p>“Not anytime recently,” Chad said, pulling out his handkerchief and pressing it to his nose so he’d look a little less horrible. “And usually not this bad.  He prefers to delegate.”</p>
<p>The Queen hummed, her grip tightening against his arm. “How often does he do that?”</p>
<p>“When I was home?  A couple times a week.” It was a fact that shamed Chad, but there was no point getting around it.  He definitely wasn’t going to lie to the queen, even if it made him look even worse.</p>
<p>“Since when?” she pressed, her gaze fixed in front of them.</p>
<p>Chad blinked. “You mean, how long?” At her nod, he just sort of shrugged. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “For as long as I can remember, I guess.”</p>
<p>He’d never been a particularly good prince, despite his best efforts.  He’d turned to books and knowledge more out of desperation than anything else, though that hadn’t helped.</p>
<p>Queen Belle tensed, then just as quickly seemed to relax. “You’re going to be staying here for a bit,” she decided, and who was he to argue with her? “Just while we reach out to your father and try to put this nastiness behind us.”</p>
<p>“He really didn’t mean anything by it,” Chad said, dabbing at his nose. “He would have waited until we were in the car if I hadn’t been a shithead.”</p>
<p>Oh.  <em>Woops</em>.  He probably shouldn’t curse in front of a queen.  Where was Chad’s head today?</p>
<p>“The problem wasn’t where he did it, Chad,” she said quietly. “The problem was <em>what</em> he did.”</p>
<p>It was an entirely mysterious statement, one that boggled Chad so thoroughly that he just decided to give up.  He hated the fact that she’d have to bother his dad, but she was the queen, so maybe that was her due. </p>
<p>Whatever, Chad was tired and he guessed he wasn’t going to get sold to a brothel.  At least for now, so the day was as good as it was going to get. </p>
<p>“Okay,” Chad said, and he followed where she led him, hoping, since he did not know, that things would be alright.</p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>There were several unique experiences occurring that evening, and most of them seemed to center around Queen Belle.  The first of which being that no one had ever interrupted the Duke before when he was chastising Chad, and the second, and current, notion being that no one had ever stuck around while Chad’s injuries were being tended to.</p>
<p>His nannies had, back in the day, but when Chad had turned ten he was labeled ‘too old’ for such indulgences.  Captain Anozie had tried to step in when he could after that, but he had his own duties to attend to and Chad got injured too frequently to warrant the effort of pulling the important man aside for something as trivial as his health, so Chad was usually alone when the doctors treated whatever accumulation of aches he had managed to acquire by pissing off the Duke again. </p>
<p>But this time Chad was in Auradon Castle, with a doctor that had never seen him before.  This time Queen Belle was there to hold his hand (which he should have protested, but she’d instigated and Chad had liked it and if she didn’t let go it was probably fine) the entire time.  She was there to insist on an x-ray for his nose (Chad could have told her it was only bruised, <em>had</em> told her that, but she’d been adamant) and then a full body scan for ‘her own peace of mind’, but Chad was pretty sure she just wanted to get a good idea of how often Chad had earned himself a beating by looking at the long-term damage done to his body. </p>
<p>She’d even let him see the results, which his doctors rarely allowed, and the old breaks and poorly-healed fractures definitely lined up with the minor chronic pain he had experienced over the years. </p>
<p>It was when Chad’s nose was cleaned up and his scalp thoroughly checked (Chad had already told them nothing was bleeding but Queen Belle wanted to check anyway) that Ben shoved himself into Chad’s private treatment room, looking wild in a way he rarely managed before he was throwing himself at Chad, his gangly arms wrapping around the blond’s waist and head shoved against Chad’s thigh as Ben did his best to wrap himself around the lower half of Chad’s body from where he sat on the examination table.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I couldn’t stay away,” Ben was rambling, nuzzling into Chad’s legs as though they’d never parted. “I tried, but I had to see you-”</p>
<p>“Fuck off, Ben,” Chad snarled, forgetting, for one moment, the literal queen sharing the room with them as rage threatened to consume him. “You threw me out.  You don’t get to cut me out of your life when you get bored and then try to drag me back in when I seem interesting again.”</p>
<p>“<em>No</em>,” Ben rumbled, holding Chad closer, his fingers digging into his waist. “Let go, never thrown out.  Let go because you were obviously unhappy, I just- I wanted you to be happy but you didn’t seem happy <em>gone</em> either…”</p>
<p>“I-” Chad shouldn’t give into the temptation of listening, he <em>shouldn’t</em>, because Ben always did this shit to him, but Chad was tired and a little achy and it seemed like no matter what he did there was this aching void in his chest that followed him around all the time. “Everyone leaves, Ben.  <em>You</em> left.  So what… what was the point?”</p>
<p>Ben let out a pained cry that genuinely seemed to sympathize with Chad’s plight. “Afraid,” Ben said. “You were afraid we’d go, so you pushed, and then <em>I</em> pushed thinking it was what you wanted-”</p>
<p>“It’s stupid,” Chad snapped, rubbing at his eyes that had decided to get watery for some damn reason. “You don’t even like me.  <em>None</em> of you like me, you just like the way I smell.”</p>
<p>“Not true, not true, not true,” Ben chanted, holding onto a phrase the same way he did when he was particularly lost. “You’re so smart, Chad.  You’re so clever and thoughtful and you do things like take my proclamations and make them better.  You win people over because you don’t bother lying to them and if you’d just <em>let</em> us love you, we would, please.”</p>
<p>“No, you wouldn’t,” Chad urged, shaking his head resolutely because he needed to be smart about this. “I’m an asshole, Ben.”</p>
<p>“<em>Don’t call my mate an asshole</em>,” Ben snarled, surging up to climb onto the examination table until he was kissing Chad with an unyielding intensity that made Chad shudder, determined to have as much contact as possible but somehow careful not to bump Chad’s wounds.  “Mine, mine, mine- Chad, please, Chad,” Ben gasped, nuzzling his shoulder. “I don’t have words for how I knew it was you.  I just <em>knew</em>.  And I got you and you were everything I imagined you’d be and more, somehow.  You help me <em>think</em>, you make me want to be better, I want to make things better for you and love you <em>as you are</em>, and if you change, great, I’ll love that version of you too.”</p>
<p>“Ben.” Chad wanted to rub at his cheeks again but Ben had a stranglehold of his hands. “Don’t- don’t say that…” He blinked when Ben slid off the examination table, a pulse of fear rocking through his chest when he realized this was it, Ben was <em>leaving</em>, and then the prince was sinking lower, sliding onto his knees as he stared up at Chad with big, dopey eyes.</p>
<p>“What are you doing?” Chad asked, because Ben shouldn’t be smiling after all that.</p>
<p>“Something you’ll hate,” Ben said, his grin relentless. “Something very stupid.”</p>
<p>“Then don’t do it,” Chad ordered, attempting to swallow down his emotions and failing.</p>
<p>“No.” Ben squeezed his fingers. “This needs to be done.  You need to know I’m here until the end.  You need to know I’m not leaving, <em>no one’s</em> leaving.  Chad-” He reached into his pocket, and with a happiness that refused to yield, held up a small circle of gold. “Will you marry me?”</p>
<p>“This is stupid,” Chad gasped, blinking his eyes furiously. “How long have you had that?”</p>
<p>“Since the first week of school,” Ben said, like he was <em>proud</em> of this. “I can make promises all day, but you’re not going to believe me until I give you indisputable proof.  This is it, Chad.  Please, <em>please-</em>”</p>
<p>“We are sixteen, Benjamin,” Chad snapped.</p>
<p>Ben only offered him that hopeless smile. “We’ll get married after college,” he promised. “But we’ll wear rings to mark that we belong to each other, and that’s something no one else can ever take away.  So,” he took another breath. “Will you-?”</p>
<p>“Yes, <em>stupid</em>,” Chad said, breath coming out halfway like a sob, because this was- for all his protests, this had been exactly what he wanted.  And sure, his mind probably wouldn’t be able to rest until they’d actually gotten married, but Ben was too nice a guy to leave him high and dry-</p>
<p>“Stop thinking,” Ben hummed, sliding the ring onto his finger. “I’m yours.  You’re not my mate anymore, Chad, I’m <em>yours</em>.  I belong to <em>you</em>, not the other way around.”</p>
<p>“…to me,” Chad whispered, slightly overwhelmed by the implications of it. </p>
<p>Yeah, he could get used to that.</p>
<p>“Yep,” Ben grinned, pressing a kiss to Chad’s knee. “Now-”</p>
<p>“Mother<em>fucker</em>,” was how Mal decided to roll up onto the scene, the door flying open much the same way as it had the first day he’d met her. “What are you doing?”</p>
<p>Ben, who had always been sort of hopeless, shot Mal a delighted grin because he actually had no capacity for instincts that would help him survive. “I’m gonna marry Chad!”</p>
<p>Mal loosed an unfathomable sound of rage before she was flying across the room, climbing up onto the examination table so she could wrap herself around Chad, and it was almost impressive that Chad had missed Mal’s affection for him, her protective nature, because it was so very present and true.  Now that Ben had pointed it out, Chad could see how Mal wanted to love him even if she didn’t really know how.  For them – for <em>him</em> – she tried.</p>
<p>“Dumbass,” Mal snarled, though this was entirely aimed at Ben. “<em>We</em> are going to marry Chad.”</p>
<p>“Oh.” Ben blinked. “Obviously.” </p>
<p>‘Obviously’, the boy said, forgetting that his proposal hadn’t included the others, even if they were apparently inherent.  They might not even <em>want</em> this, except for the fact that Mal had just declared otherwise, and Mal was sort of the boss of all of them.</p>
<p>“Obviously,” Mal huffed, eyes glowing green as she caressed Chad’s ring.  A second later the metal began to glow, emanating a warmth that was soft and kind, and when the light faded, Chad was left with a band that seemed to be woven from a hundred tiny metal vines, light blue gems placed sporadically throughout the design.</p>
<p>“Yes,” Ben hummed in something like approval. “That’s a lot better.”</p>
<p>“<em>Obviously</em>,” Mal mocked, but she was grinning, nuzzling at Chad’s throat before sinking her teeth into his pale flush.</p>
<p>Chad shuddered, reveling in the feel of being claimed, in being <em>marked</em>, and knew he was definitely close to crying again.  It didn’t help when Ben scrambled up beside him, lapping at the other side of Chad’s neck before biting into that, until the two of them had left sizeable bruises that made Chad feel both breathless and sated. </p>
<p>It was then that Queen Belle cleared her throat, reminding them that she was, in fact, present.</p>
<p>Chad wasn’t even embarrassed.  He found, hilariously enough, that he was too happy to care about proper decorum.</p>
<p>“Congratulations, you three,” she said, smiling in a way that could be nothing but sincere.  “I’ll contact Lumiere about making a proper engagement announcement, but perhaps you should keep things a little bit easy, given Chad’s recent injuries.”</p>
<p>“Really,” Chad sniffed, rubbing at his eyes. “It looked worse than it is.  I’m fine now.”</p>
<p>“No, she’s right,” Mal hummed, making the queen’s gaze widen in delight. “You deserve pampering and cuddles.”</p>
<p>“The others miss you,” Ben said, kissing Chad’s neck, his jaw, his cheek. “They’ll want snuggles too.”</p>
<p>“We’ll go slow,” Mal informed the queen sagely, and it was cute, how Ben rushed to nod in agreement beside her. “Can we take Chad back to our suite now?”</p>
<p>“If that’s what he wants,” the queen said calmly, because Chad’s opinions mattered, because these two strong, brilliant, insane people belonged to him just as much as he belonged to them. </p>
<p>“I want that,” Chad said, smiling.  Happy, he was <em>happy</em>. “I’d like that a lot.”</p>
<p>“Then you’re going to get it,” Mal said, pressing a soft kiss to his lips, and-</p>
<p>Yeah, Chad could get used to that.  A lot. </p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>“Guess who’s getting married?!” Mal announced when she burst into Ben’s royal suite, the others startling from whatever positions they had taken up. “The answer is all of us.  Also, Chad’s back.”</p>
<p>“Chad!” Evie and Carlos cheered at the same time, and Ben set Chad back on his feet (having insisted he get to carry <em>‘his mate’</em> the entire way up from the infirmary) just in time for the two of them to tackle hug him. </p>
<p>“Sorry,” Chad said, because he’d missed them too.  Missed all of them. “Sorry, I’m not- I’m not used to having nice things I get to keep.”</p>
<p>“What I’m getting from this is that we’re nice things,” Carlos surmised with a blush that made his freckles look even more adorable than usual. </p>
<p>“The nicest,” Chad confirmed, and both of them beamed at him, Evie the epitome of beauty and grace and Carlos earnest to a breathtaking degree, because they trusted him, because they enjoyed his presence too.</p>
<p>“We’re going to get married?” Evie asked, choosing her words so very carefully.</p>
<p>Chad squeezed them both close, pressing soft kisses to their cheeks for no other reason than he wanted to, and he could. “If you want to,” he said quietly. “But um- I’d be honored-” </p>
<p>“We’d also be honored,” Carlos interrupted, and then with an initiative he normally didn’t indulge, he grabbed Chad’s collar, dragging him down so he could pull him into a very enthusiastic kiss.  Eventually they had to break apart to breathe, and that was when Evie ducked in, smearing makeup all over Chad’s mouth but Chad couldn’t care, knew he likely looked dazed when he pulled away but felt no obligation to give a single shit. </p>
<p>“Easy, tigers,” Mal chided, voice trailing off in an amused chuckle. “We’ve got to take it slow for now.”</p>
<p>“Of course we do,” Jay’s voice echoed from behind them, annoyed and put upon, and yet when Evie and Carlos stepped away, he had nothing but smiles for Chad. “Hey, genius,” he greeted, offering him a sly wink before pulling Chad into his arms. “Your brain’s looking real sexy today.  Love how strategic you are, and vicious with paperwork-”</p>
<p>“<em>Jay</em>,” Chad whined, feeling a heat rise to his cheeks.</p>
<p>“Don’t say I can’t learn,” Jay hummed, rubbing his nose against Chad’s.  “You’re right, you’re worth way more than your appearance – you’ve got a killer brain and I love it a fuck ton.  Deal with it.” He finished this with a kiss that left Chad crooning, because it was just as soft as usual, meaning Jay really had cared for him before this; Chad had just been too blind to see it.</p>
<p>“Love you,” Chad gasped when Jay pulled back, and it was worth it, for how very delighted it seemed to make the Agraben.</p>
<p>“Hey,” Carlos cut in, stubbornly wrapping himself around both of them. “Me too.”</p>
<p>“And me!” Evie chirped, nuzzling Chad’s shoulder.</p>
<p>“Love you,” Chad repeated. “Love all of you.” Tears were gathering at the corners of his eyes, and yet, they did not fall. “<em>Love you</em>.”</p>
<p>“Damn straight, you do,” Mal said, wrapping herself around as many of them as possible, Ben doing the same on the other side. “Now, let’s get to pampering.”</p>
<p>Ben offered them a grin so wide it threatened to split his face in two, humming in something like agreement. “Yes, <em>let’s</em>.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This is it, folks!  We finally got to the end :) Thanks to everyone who stuck along for the ride, who offered feedback and support.  Your comments, kudos, bookmarks, and subscriptions are greatly appreciated, especially for this nonsense ;D</p>
<p>Normally when I post the last chapter of a story, I also post the first chapter of my next one, but because I’m posting two stories at once and the next handful are on the shorter side, I will be posting the first chapter of my next intimate-relations-focused story on Sunday, <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29761452/chapters/73207809">'Personal Indulgences'.</a><br/>This is mostly so I won’t fall behind with editing, which is a bit of a job in itself.  But hey, it’s Harry-centric, so if you’ve been waiting for some pirate-y goodness, it’s just on the horizon!</p>
<p>Story notes:</p>
<p>Of course Ben would make a big grand overture without consulting Mal, he’s a true dummy like that, lol.</p>
<p>It is my personal canon that Chad busts out Ben’s full name when he thinks the other prince is being a doofus. </p>
<p>For the record, the intent of this story is not to push the idea that true love fixes everything, but that communication is vital in a relationship, and healthy support structures and embracing and accepting your feelings are key to being more settled in life.  Just wanted to throw that out there. </p>
<p>WARNING – Verbal &amp; Mild Physical Abuse/Slutshaming – In scene 5, the Duke is finally made aware of Chad’s relationship with Ben and is, of course, less than pleased.  There is a lot of slutshaming and verbal abuse, and he backhands Chad enough times to make his nose bleed and drags him by his hair, so if you would prefer to skip these things, please look for:</p>
<p>“You don’t understand,” Chad said, struggling to keep up with him. “If you had just kept your cool-”</p>
<p>Skip down to:</p>
<p>“Duke Francis.” The composed tone was such a contrast to the Duke’s rage that Chad almost believed he’d imagined it, except the Duke had frozen, hand pulled back as though he had been about to strike Chad once more.</p>
<p>You’ll be good from there.</p>
<p>Until next time. </p>
<p>-:-:-:-:-:-</p>
<p>‘Oh, I’m gonna be wounded.  Oh, I’m gonna be your wound.  Oh, I’m gonna bruise you.  Oh, you’re gonna be my bruise.’ – ‘The Word of Your Body’ from the musical Spring Awakening.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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